Gruffalo soldier... author’s fight for libraries
CHILDREN’S author Julia Donaldson has thrown her weight behind a campaign to safeguard Scottish libraries.
The Gruffalo creator is backing the move after it was revealed budget cuts have left only 11 out of 32 councils with a full-time librarian in every secondary, despite pupil numbers increasing by more than 6,700 since 2010.
The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals in Scotland is leading the Libraries Matter campaign, which aims to maintain staffed facilities in schools. Mrs Donaldson, pictured, said: ‘Reading broadens the mind, stimulates the imagination and increases literacy – librarians and libraries are the most important people and places for fostering a love of reading.’
The Scottish Government said it was committed to ‘investing in the National Libraries Strategy’ and will ensure ‘every child receives library membership’. School libraries are, it added, the responsibility of local councils.