The Carnegie UK Trust’s new databases reveal how libraries help communities discover and explore new technology, highlighting libraries’ significant potential as partners in enhancing digital participation.
Public libraries have always had a vital role to play in enabling access to knowledge, providing opportunities to learn and bringing people together. Libraries across the UK continue to enrich lives in these ways by providing digital training and access to tech.
Consider Halesworth’s
iPad lending service or the Scottish Library and Information Council
Technology Petting Zoo which gives people hands on time with different technologies – be that Raspberry Pi's or 3D printers. Meanwhile, Edinburgh City Libraries’ mobile makerspace (
Digital Toyboxes ) rotate six boxes of different types of kit among libraries, with staff delivering kit-based sessions to teens. In Dundee Central Library, groups with additional support needs utilise 3D printers to create characters for children’s storytelling sessions to help enhance the experience for those who are blind or partially sighted.
Libraries also host and run growing numbers of Raspberry Pi, robotics and coding clubs. Many also provide basic IT training and access to computers. For example,
Got IT? is a free programme in Northern Ireland to support people with little or no knowledge of computers and help them develop IT basic skills. North Ayrshire’s
Appiness project co-ordinates a programme of educational apps and digital learning for very young children and their carers. Carers also learn about safety controls and how to evaluate age-appropriate content.
These examples are the tip of the iceberg and the wealth of case studies in
The Carnegie UK Trust’s new databases reveal public libraries’ broader untapped potential as partners in enhancing digital engagement.
Last modified on 22 January 2020
