Monday, June 3rd - Barbican Library

The Barbican Library is a public library located in the Barbican Centre that serves anyone who lives, works or studies in the City of London. The collection consists of 660,000 bound volumes and 370,000 reels of microfilm containing tens of millions of newspapers with 52,000 titles on 45 km of shelves. Some highlights of the collection include the music library, children’s library, and rotating art exhibitions.

I was very excited to start off at a public library since I work at one back home in Toronto. It was interesting to see what things are the same (helping newcomers with immigration paperwork, tech support, the emergence of self service technology) and what things are different (charging a loan fee for DVD’s and CD’s). There were some tips and tricks I’ll be taking back home. For example, Joe the children’s librarian spoke about how they frequently bundle events together with other organizations to increase attendance. I also found interesting the challenges the library faces as a mixed used space that caters to a wide range of users (public, academic, etc). Being in a building that also houses an art gallery, theatre, cinema and restaurants means that things aren’t always going to be quiet. The librarian spoke about how they set up a soft space for their programs like English conversation circles and crafting groups, but also have quiet study areas for students.

My favourite part of the visit was the Music Library! They have a listening station for their vinyl collection (today's selection was the soundtrack to Oklahoma!). They also have piano practice stations for members to use. The “Unsigned London” collection is a CD collection of London artists who are currently unsigned, and helps local artists to promote their music to a wider audience.

Visit the Barbican Library website here