Urgent search for Stokesley library volunteers

STOKESLEY Library will close this year unless more volunteers come forward to help run it, a group has warned.

The centre is one of 21 in North Yorkshire that is due to be handed over to the community in spring this year, after the county council announced it could no longer afford to operate them due to budget cuts.

But the community charitable group in the process of being registered to take over the running of Stokesley Library says it is in desperate need of more volunteers to avoid the resource being closed when North Yorkshire County Council ends its management of the library in March/April.

A wide range of skills are being sought from assisting the librarian, to helping customers with enquiries, stacking shelves, cleaning or online work.

Stokesley parish and county councillor Bryn Griffiths said they were looking for people of all ages to help volunteer, including young people who might be looking for a voluntary role with the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme, or who would benefit from a reference to boost employment chances.

The charitable organisation is aiming to open for 19 hours a week, including Saturday mornings and appropriate training will be provided.

Cllr Griffiths said: “There’s a big push for volunteers because we need to be ready by April. There’s a lot of training needs to be done, depending on what skills people have. Finding these volunteers is a serious concern for us, because if we don’t have them, we can’t run the library.”

Cllr Griffiths said they looking for people with all kinds of different skills, who could work anything from a couple of hours a week to every day on a rota basis.

A drop-in session is being held in the library between 2pm and 3pm on Wednesday, January 18 for those who may be interested in volunteering. Those who can’t make this session should get in touch directly with the library or email sec.stokesleylibgro@btinternet.com

The group are also looking for a treasurer to join the team, to ensure that the financial aspects of the charity are properly managed.

Story courtesy of The Darlington and Stockton Times full story available here: http://www.darlingtonandstocktontimes.co.uk/news/15022465.Urgent_search_for_library_volunteers/?ref=BNTMedia&utm_medium=facebook