New chapter opens for library
A LIBRARY with more than 5000 books and resources for disabilities has relocated to Dunedin.
After being based in Wellington for about 20 years, CCS Disability Action has reopened its free national library and information service in Portsmouth Dr.
Librarian Krissy Wright said the space was more than a repository for books and it was somewhere she could help people find valuable resources.
‘‘Anyone can hand you a book but actually being able to explain the content of it or a key piece of information can be lifechanging for some people. ‘‘It certainly was for me.’’ Mrs Wright, a parent to a child with a disability, has been working in the disability sector for more than 30 years and has managed the disability research library at the Donald Beasley Institute for about 20 years.
‘‘It’s kind of my passion getting information out there to people because information is power really for parents and anyone trying to navigate this system and the organisations and all those pathways for disabilities because you don’t get a map.’’
The library’s catalogue had a variety of resources including children’s books that covered specific disabilities and issues such as anxiety as well as board games to help teach the road code for those attempting their learner driver test.
Mrs Wright said resources also included information for people who had been given a new diagnosis or had gone through health events such as a stroke.
She said the resources were really important from a disabled person’s point of view and the library added to Dunedin’s services in the disabilities sector.
The library had a cosy environment with couches, desk space and a kitchenette.