Culture Minister Neil Gray has announced Scottish Government funding of £450,000 to support library services across Scotland.
Mr Gray announced the opening of the 2022/23 Public Library Improvement Fund (PLIF) today on a visit to Rutherglen Library to see the impact the Memories Scotland project has had on the community.
Funded by the PLIF, the Memories Scotland project launched in May, giving libraries across Scotland the opportunity to open their rich local history collections to the public, both online and in person.
Helping to promote social inclusion in the community, these heritage resources also provide a focal point for Library Memory Groups which support people suffering from dementia and other forms of memory loss.
The Memories Scotland archive includes a collection of historical images, artefacts, film and audio on the themes of Working Life and Social Life.
Culture Minister Neil Gray said: “The network of library-based memory groups across Scotland is a great example of what libraries can achieve with support from the Scottish Government’s Public Library Improvement Fund.
“The Covid pandemic increased the impact of isolation for many individuals within our communities, particularly those living with dementia, and for them these memory groups are a real life-line.”
The Scottish Library and Information Council (SLIC) distribute funding on behalf of the Scottish Government and will award the 2022/23 Public Library Improvement Fund to public library projects focusing on:
- Economic wellbeing (support for the cost of living crisis)
- Bridging the digital divide (recognising that data poverty has become an even bigger issue as a result of the pandemic and cost of living crisis)
- Closing the attainment gap (in recognition that children and young people need the support of the local library now more than ever); and
- Sustainability, which SLIC sees as an overarching theme of its strategy, Forward, which focuses on sustainable development goals
Pamela Tulloch, chief executive of SLIC, said: “The Public Library Improvement Fund supports creative, sustainable and innovative public library projects throughout Scotland.
“These projects support the vision set out in Forward: Scotland’s Public Library Strategy 2021-2025, as well as the Scottish Government’s Net Zero ambitions. Focusing on the themes of People, Place & Partnership, the PLIF places significant emphasis on ensuring that the impact of these projects is sustained beyond the one-year period of the funding.
“Leaving behind a valuable legacy of skills, experience, resources and partnerships that will continue to benefit the community for years to come, these projects help to map out an exciting future for Scotland’s public libraries and the role they play in communities across Scotland, and we can’t wait to see what ideas the services submit this year.”
The Public Library Improvement Fund 2022 is now open to applications and will close at 12pm on Wednesday 2November 2022.
For more information on how to apply, visit: The Public Library Improvement Fund (scottishlibraries.org)
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