Project Brighton: Vicky Tremain from Jubilee Library on how you can celebrate Brighton & Hove Libraries this World Book Day

Circus Storytime at Jubilee Library

Children try their hand at circus skills with library staff

World Book Day Storytime with Puffin Nursery

Young City Reads 2016 launch with St Bartholomew’s Primary

World Book Day is a global celebration of reading that is well highlighted in every librarian’s calendar, and here at Brighton & Hove Libraries it’s a particularly special date as it marks the anniversary of the opening of our flagship branch in the heart of the city’s North Laine.

Since its doors first opened in March 2005, Jubilee Library has been in the top five most visited libraries in the UK with over 1 million visits a year. The building itself has won its own accolades for architecture and sustainable design – its carbon emissions are only 50% of conventional buildings and the toilets are flushed with rainwater collected from the roof.

This year, World Book Day falls on Thursday 2nd March and the occasion provides library members old and new with the opportunity to celebrate their local libraries and the dedicated staff that run them. It is not only an opportunity to reflect on the joy of reading, but also the importance of these free, safe spaces at the heart of communities.

The only thing that you absolutely have to know, is the location of the library – Albert Einstein

On World Book Day 2017 we’ll be hosting workshops for selected primary school classes to launch Young City Reads – Brighton & Hove’s ‘big read’ for children, which sees school classes across the city reading the same book at the same time to form a giant book group. We’ll also be providing World Book Day activity sheets for families after school so do pop in to your local branch and say hello.

Our libraries are free to join – anyone can join – and we’re committed to ensuring you have access to books that you’ll love, and the information that you need. You can borrow books, DVDs, CDs, audiobooks, eBooks, access the internet, attend courses and events, or just drop in to study or read the paper.

10 things you might not know about your library service:
1) It’s free to join – did we mention that already?
2) The Queen visited Jubilee Library in 2007 and joined in with one of our popular Baby Boogie music sessions for pre-school children
3) Our creative team of library staff run an annual art exhibition, Paperback, featuring their own work.
4) A grand total of 73,709 books and DVDs were borrowed by children last summer holiday over the duration of the Summer Reading Challenge.
5) We have a fantastic range of ‘Mood Boosting Books’ and ‘Books on Prescription’ for all ages.
6) You can hire out our conference rooms for your meetings or events.
7) Jubilee Library has a cafe that serves delicious coffee and cake amongst other things.
8) We have a Rare Books collection, which features manuscripts spanning over seven centuries.
9) All of our libraries have free Wi-Fi.
10) We have a wide selection of online resources and subscriptions available to our members for free via our website, as well as our own eBook and eAudio lending portal ‘Overdrive’.

To find more information including opening times and location of your local library visit www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/libraries, connect with us on Twitter @BHLibraries or find us on Facebook.

To find out more about Young City Reads visit www.collectedworks.co.uk or follow @youngcityreads on Twitter.

For more information about World Book Day visit www.worldbookday.com