To ask you how to encourage more people to use the library?

My local library doesn’t have anyone running it but they do put out some of the Lego books they have (they have some which are reference only) alongside the Lego. They don’t advertise an age range either.

I’ve actually been into my local library this morning with my baby to return a couple of books. I went into the children’s section for the first time and it hit me how little space there is to actually sit and enjoy a book. There’s a large rug in the middle of the children’s area but I can’t help but think some lovely beanbags or chairs would be useful. I’m well aware of the funding issues though so it’s definitely a pipe dream!

Social media is definitely a big one for me - other libraries in my borough have social media pages but mine doesn’t. That means that unless you actually go in, you don’t know about the groups and activities.

I gave up ok borrowing books at the library as it costs 20 p at my local charity shop to buy a book or 3 for £1 at the others. The risk of me misplacing a library book or not being able to get it back in time .. decided it's not worth it. Do love to pop in if I pas which is hard now due to the parking in my local town. I pay with coins to park now it's app which I can't use

I was there in a corner and I could hear someone ranting on and on without a break at the top of her voice, and I was surprised to find that it was the librarian!

Yes, even Blockbusters managed that.

Agree that out of hours drop off needs to be made possible

quiet working space for adults
Quiet working space for teens or younger - put this close to the librarians desk.
warm space
place where you can read a paper
Practical community events- pop up banking, citizens advice, etc
any leisure community groups they can accommodate

They wouldn't survive if they were just quiet places to read.

I think some are library staff /council and some are volunteers.

They have a coding club, I'll try and find and send you a link.

OP

I think volunteers get a free DBS, I'm not 100% sure.

If you have teens over age 16 then they can get a DBS and then register for the update service, this is another thing that looks good on a CV.

The librarians at the libraries I have used could do with being a bit more cheerful and welcoming.

Our library is great. Books, free computers, wifi, it has a café and loads of activities going on. It's like a social hub.

I run a Lego club at my school. I haven't had to buy any Lego. I've been deluged with the stuff!

You don't need any skill either as the merest mention of Lego will attract highly skilled Lego builders, mostly boys, 11-12.

Some stacking storage boxes with clear lids, and a few base plates may be useful.

I don't know if it ever got off the ground but my local library were once talking about a partnership with the community nursing team where once per month the nurses would come go give talks on topics nominated by the community. The idea was that people could make suggestions of health topics they wanted to know more about and the nurses would organise a talk or workshop. A few examples given were healthy diet for children, mental health in teenagers, supporting someone with addiction, diabetes/obesity.

100%. This is the biggest reason I don't use my library more.

Also wish it was open on a Sunday too.

Could you put up an ad in library for lego donations, Facebook marketplace or mention to a charity shop if they get donations?

I used to live in another location

I used the small local library, but I really struggled to return the books due to the library being closed
before I left work. This library had no drop off box to return books out of hours.

Our local library hosts two baby bounce and rhymes a week. A toddler stay and play session and an older kids lego session each week. They also do free crafts in the holidays, certainly gets families in

Saturday vs Sunday mornings is really dependant on families and sports - Sunday morning clashes with church, lots of rugby clubs play on Sunday - but then round here school rugby and football is Saturday. It might be worth polling your local families, could you put together an easy form to fill in and ask schools to send it out to families?

It's far enough away from the area with the books and quite close to the noisy coffee machine, so ok! It's an area with chairs where you agree to wait for someone on a rainy day, wait for the bus, or have a cheap, safe 15 min first date, so it's actually really nice listening for a bit. They have displays of books so I pick one up to flick through for 15 mins instead of playing on my phone, and let the baby out of his buggy for a crawl. It's a very different way of using the library to most of the other suggestions.

Ours is only open until lunchtime on Saturday, such a shame as I've often wanted to visit on Saturday afternoon.

Definitely regular groups for children. Our local children's centre used the library as the venue for a story group, so it was not run by library staff. Would this work for you? Wouldn't take away your staff but gets people through the door. Also the major and local press were in invited for one session to get word out.

How about the annual closure first two weeks of Sept when children have just gone back to school and tired of an evening? Not during school holidays as families need something to do and you may get tourists too?