STORYTELLING, writing workshops and green-themed crafts are some of the free events taking place in Leicester’s libraries next week.
The packed programme of events is part of Libraries Week – a national initiative taking place from Monday 2 October until Sunday 8 October across all 16 of the city’s libraries.
This year, the theme for the week is climate change and sustainability – a theme that’s reflected in the activities lined up as part of Leicester's programme.
There’s a chance to find out how to join Leicester’s environmental volunteers at Beaumont Leys Library on Monday (2 October, 10am-12 noon), for example, while later that day, staff from the city council’s energy team will be at Westcotes Library to talk to people about the grants available to improve the energy efficiency of their homes (Monday, 3pm-6.30pm).
On Tuesday (3 October), people can find out how to compost their food waste at a Recycling & Reuse session at New Parks Library (10am-12 noon), while new life will be given to old textiles at a craft session at the Brite Centre that takes place at the same time.
As well as green-themed activities, there’ll also be lots of opportunities to try something new. In partnership with Leicester Adult Education, the city’s libraries will host author talks, workshops and craft sessions, as well as a programme of taster sessions to encourage people to have a go at learning new skills this autumn.
Assistant city mayor for neighbourhood services Cllr Vi Dempster said: “Libraries Week is a celebration of our libraries, with a wide variety of events and activities taking place across the city.
“Our packed programme has something for everyone, with all 16 of our libraries taking part and with all events completely free of charge.
“As well as activities around the national theme of sustainability and climate change, there will also be talks by local and national authors and plenty of opportunities to learn something new at one of our adult learning taster sessions.
“I hope that Libraries Week will provide an opportunity for people to discover all that their local library has to offer.”
All the events taking place during Libraries Week are free of charge, although some have limited places so need to be booked in advance.
More information and a full list of everything that’s on offer throughout the week is available at leicester.gov.uk/librariesweek
Libraries Week is organised nationally by CILIP, the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals. To find out more, visit librariesweek.org.uk