First Year’s Progress
WENVOE COMMUNITY HUB
Tel: 02920 594176 – during opening hours or wenvoelibrary@outlook.com
Like and follow us on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/WenvoeCommunityLibrary
For general enquiries you can email us at wenvoelibrary@outlook.com
Annual Report
We opened the new Hub in May 2022, and we thought you should know how we are progressing in our first year.
Our strategic plan is a Hub which is: innovative, central to the Village, a focal point for leisure, information, and activities and inspires a love of books. It should be highly regarded by our community, supported, and respected by our Community Council and fund raising.
Since we reopened, we have increased our registrations by 113 new members. More people are borrowing books, meeting up with their friends, attending groups and events with the latest figure of 1,064 visitors in the month of November. We are now officially counted as the busiest Community Library per capita in the Vale of Glamorgan.
The Hub directors and workers are all volunteers, without whom the Hub would not function. Although we have attracted several new members to the team, we are always looking for new volunteers to keep abreast of our growing services and provision.
As well as our increase in borrowers, we have developed several groups. Clwb Clonc, our group for those wishing to practise their Welsh language skills, has so increased in membership that we have to hold it in two separate sessions on Mondays. Building on this format, we have developed a French and an Italian group. The Stitches group are busy with their sewing and wools crafts churning out wonderful projects, many of which they have donated to the Hub. The notorious Silver Foxes continue with their antics on Fridays.
Reading helps improve children’s vocabulary, communication, writing and grammar skills. We hope to make a difference to their development by encouraging children to read. Starting with our Babies and Toddlers group when Bernie and Jill lead the little ones in Storytime, songs, and rhymes and where we see tiny tots begin to appreciate the value of books. The playgroup also visits us regularly as borrowers and we are delighted to make Thursdays available to Wenvoe school when every child in the school regularly visits and borrows books from the library. Alina, our Schools Liaison Volunteer organises this as well as the Summer Reading Challenge.
Our Police Community Support Officer joins us every six weeks when we have a Cuppa with a Coppa. This provides us with a chance to discuss any policing issues that may be affecting us as individuals or as a community. Monthly talks at the Hub are always a sell-out and we have an interesting variety of topics to which you can look forward in 2023. Our most recent initiative is the Wellbeing group for carers and those, they support who are living with dementia or mild cognitive impairment.
The Hub is helping to support its community through the cost-of-living crisis by offering a free warm welcome. We have a supply of board games and activities in readiness for those of you who don’t want to heat your homes when you can visit a warm and friendly environment and meet up with your friends.
Our strategic view for 2023 is to continue to re-structure our book content to be more what our readers want. To seek more volunteers through personal contact and promotion. To continue to work with Wenvoe Primary School and Wenvoe Playgroup. To manage our finances wisely – keep costs down and raise income. Also, to organise another Village Show
Coming up in the New Year:
Wellbeing Group: 2pm Friday 6th January
Talks at the Hub-Steve Jones – Brunel in south Wales. 7pm on Friday January 27th. Tickets are £3 and on sale now
Cuppa with a Coppa: TBA
The Reading Agency is partnering with Science Museum Group to inspire children across the country to feed their imagination over the summer holiday, with a reading challenge focused on science and innovation.
The draw for the Easter Raffle took place at midday on Saturday, 16th April.