The Minister was commenting as he visited the new ‘Teenage Kicks’ area in Derry Central Library. It was designed in consultation with local young people and is a comfortable space filled with the resources that the City’s young people find attractive.
The Minister said: “The voice of local young people has been heard and it’s fascinating to realise that they have had major input to the design of ‘Teenage Kicks’. It’s up to the minute and equipped with everything they need. To coin a phrase – it’s cool!
“As Minister responsible for libraries, I am looking forward to leading the revitalisation of our library service. I am keen for libraries to do their research carefully and target their efforts on those groups currently missing from libraries or who need the help that libraries provide. Teenage Kicks is a good example of how that can happen.
“Libraries should be focusing on young adults, children and people who lack basic skills – literacy skills, computer skills and the ‘know how’ to find information, as well as helping people who use English as a second language.”
The Minister later visited the Nerve Centre in Magazine Street where he was given a tour by Quintin Oliver and Pearse Moore, Chair and Chief Executive of the Centre. He met some young people involved in two different creative programmes and was given a presentation on the work of the creative learning centre with in the formal education sector by Martin Melarky, Director of Strategy.
Notes to editors:
The Department of Culture Arts and Leisure provided an additional grant of £50,000 to the Western Education and Library Board to create the ‘Teenage Kicks’ area in Derry Central Library.
The total library budget in Northern Ireland is around £34 million in the current financial year - £29 million recurrent and £5 million capital. Since 1999 the library budget has increased by 16% in real terms.
£36 million (over 10 years) has been invested in the People’s Network, which provides public access to computers, including the internet in all libraries across Northern Ireland.
Capital investment of £23m in library buildings has produced new developments in the last four years including Lisburn, Cookstown, Castlederg, Irvinestown, Finaghy, Magherafelt, Strabane and Ballymena. Work is underway on major projects in Bangor and at the Grove in Belfast.
There have also been a number of significant refurbishments of existing libraries and new mobile libraries, eg Armagh and Glengormley.
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