East Dulwich Library

[Amelie]

is not taking donations in case anyone was thinking of sorting out their bookshelves. Apparently the library both at The Plough end and at Grove Vale have an overflow.

[KestonKid]

When I rang to ask Southwark Libraries late last year if they would accept books, I was told that they would accept only if they they already had a copy. Sounded pretty daft to me but there you go.

[Nero]

So where, apart from the two charity shops on LL, will accept old books? I have a few I want to get rid of. Nero

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

Let's have another book swap evening. What about it Steve?

[mikese22]

www.bookcrossing.com is quite cool, you log your book online and get a unique reference that you write in the book, then abandon it in a cafe, on a bench, on the bus etc and when someone finds it they can leave notes on your page via the reference!

[scor46]

Sorry Peckhamgatecrasher, I've just had my mind on other issues lately. Lets get March out of the way (bad weather and all) and we will do another book swap next month..

[macroban]

> then abandon it in a cafe, on a bench, on the bus etc and when someone finds it they can

Issue a ?75 fine for litter.

[mikese22]

good point!

make sure no one is looking

[Lewis]

Just back to the original post - which I find quite intriguing - library services turning down free donations. I'm going to make an enquiry about how this practice has come about, as it strikes me the common sense policy would be to accept all donations buy a few more bookshelves and stock up, especially considering there will be a new library up at Grove Vale with twice the floor space to fill....

Lewis

[macroban]

> especially considering there will be a new library up at Grove Vale with twice the floor space to fill....

I don't think anyone said there would be twice the stock of books.

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

Grrr, a sore spot with me. I want a library to provide books. I don't want films - I'll go to blockbusters for that; don't want computers, I'll go to an internet cafe for that; don't want peripheral crap, I WANT BOOKS.

[Asset]

Yes PGC but from the library you can rent films for free, unlike Blockbusters which charges. Ditto with the internet cafe. Librarys have long lent music so why not films? It's all reference.

[carolyn]

a lot of times libraries would like to take donations but simply don't have the room or the donations are books they already have multiple copies of so the books just end up on the sale shelves or stuck in a back room taking up space. or the books they get are in such poor condition that they would disintegrate on the shelves. in theory most would love to ake all donations but sorting through the books,and then housing them until they can be sold or processed actually does take up a fair bit of time and space.

can you tell i used to work in a library?

donations are probably better off going to a charity shop in most instances unless you see your local library actively advertising for books.

[cdonline]

Just wondering if any of the books were suitable for a school library.

Just occured to me that they might welcome donations.

[Amelie]

The irony in all this is that LB Southwark paid to have Dulwich Library refurbished the other year and took out all the bookshelves that actually went with the building, installed new modern ugly too short and unstable free standing shelving units that don't go with the building - and spent not one penny on new books. I have been going to Dulwich Library since I was a child and it has never had a decent collection of books. Personally I get through a lot of books and look after them, and I would consider it 'bad form' to give a book to the library that I knew was falling apart, I would rather give them to a library where people could borrow them for free than to a however well-intentioned charity shop that will charge people for them. Call me picky.

[Scruffy Mummy]

I used to work ages ago as a library assistant and we did initally take donations but as was pointed out above, they took up an inordiante amount of space and we never had the time required to go through them, look them up on the catologue, label them, enter them in on the computer, etc. etc. Plus there was always the problem of books that were in poor condition or old textbooks that were so out-of-date they weren't accurate. And then we were lumbered with getting rid of these books which often took up about 40% of the donations. So we had to stop taking donations in the end

Seriously, it would be better to lobby the Council to increase the book budget than encourage donations of books to local libraries. Oxfam has several charity bookstores in London selling donated books.

[snoozequeen1]

If anyone out there has any books in French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Russian or Swedish, including old dictionaries, reference books or encyclopedias, that they don't want, I would be very happy to take them off your hands. Not bothered about the condition of the books as long as they don't actually have those little weevil things running about in them.

[louisiana]

Scruffy Mummy Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I used to work ages ago as a library assistant and

> we did initally take donations but as was pointed

> out above, they took up an inordiante amount of

> space and we never had the time required to go

> through them, look them up on the catologue, label

> them, enter them in on the computer, etc. etc.

> Plus there was always the problem of books that

> were in poor condition or old textbooks that were

> so out-of-date they weren't accurate.

Over the last twenty-five years I've always noticed that the IT/computer shelves of local libraries are always incredibly out of date. Generally by at least 10 years.

Many people would be willing to donate such books (l could restock Dulwich Library with a wide range of books on everything from human-computer interaction (generally only in uni libraries) to Windows apps (current versions) to... Subject matter is fast-changing and the books are expensive (mostly over ?25, many over ?35/40), making donations worthwhile I would have thought.

Though I've been a library member all my life, I so rarely use them now, as they rarely have books I want to look at. The most recent example was when I tried Dulwich Library for *anything* about running voluntary organisations/NGO's (a *huge* proportion of the population is involved in not-for-profits/NGO's/third sector orgs). They initially had two not very good, extremely old books, and within months both books were mysteriously 'withdrawn' and not replaced with anything. Library staff were at a loss to explain why this had happened, or why they had nothing at all on running third sector organisations. I gave up.

And then we

> were lumbered with getting rid of these books

> which often took up about 40% of the donations.

> So we had to stop taking donations in the end

>

> Seriously, it would be better to lobby the Council

> to increase the book budget than encourage

> donations of books to local libraries. Oxfam has

> several charity bookstores in London selling

> donated books.

[HonaloochieB]

Perhaps ED library is in mortal fear that they'll end up with several hundred copies of Peter Benchley' 'The Deep' just like all the charity shops.

[????]

I think your all being spectacularly naive(sp?) once again - Taking books off Joe Public = being a charity and not a subsidised council service and could well result in Mr or Ms councillor reducing funds/budget. Library is being politically smart. Does nearly everyone else on this forum live in a Camberwick Green share & share world of make and do/no political intrigue see you at the bandstand at 4pm world? (ok, that was Trumpton).

[SeanMacGabhann]

And you claim that I am one for generalisations?

ALL??

fackin' 'ell

[????]

At least you didn't point out my crap punctuation and failre to use an apostrophe

[SteveT]

That was crap punctuation and forgetting the apostrophe is unforgivable quids

[Lewis]

The answer to the question what is the council's actual policy will be provided in writing at Council Assembly this evening and I'll post it tomorrow morning. It is also interesting to note that the District Auditor's letter discussed at Audit Committee last week raised a concern that not enough Southwark residents are using our library services.....

[Lewis]

The policy is that the library service will accept donations, on the understanding they meet a number of criteria; physical condition; currency of information;subject matter; potential for use and whether the item meets legislation affecting libraries. If they do not, they reserve the right to offer them for sale or reuse.