Short news
Chapter 1
Brief news about general developments within Kennemerwaard Library in 2023.
Certification Taalhuis
On February 1 of the year under review, Taalhuis Kennemerwaard again received an official quality certificate from the Certification Organization for Library Work, Culture and Language (CBCT). This means that Taalhuis meets important quality standards. Taalhuis Kennemerwaard scored positively on all subjects, far above the national average.
Important sections of this assessment are the effect on society, and future sustainability. With the certificate, Taalhuis Kennemerwaard has received confirmation that its functions, organization and services are being performed correctly and that all quality standards are met. The certificate is valid for four years.
Everything in Taalhuis is aimed at helping people progress in their development, so that they can play a positive role in society and feel comfortable with it.
Proud of our Colleagues
Astrid Goedknegt nominated for Youth Specialist of the Year 2023
During the Children's Book Week event in October, the three largest promoters of reading in the Netherlands were surprised with a nomination for the NBD Biblion Youth Specialist of the Year 2023 award. One of these was our colleague Astrid Goedknegt. In the end, Astrid was not elected Youth Specialist of the Year, but that does not make her colleagues any less proud.
Just being in Astrid’s presence automatically makes you happy and enthusiastic.
1st Copy of José Kruijer's book for (former) colleagues
On April 14, writer José Kruijer presented the first copy of her book Sluw to (former) library employees Ria Binnendijk and Jacqueline van der Gragt. José indicated that Jacqueline and Ria were instrumental at the start of her writing career. José: 'We talked a lot about books and that taught me a lot. The library staff provided a lot of service to support me in my writing process.' All in all a wonderful compliment for these (former) colleagues.
Emma Eigenraam presents Zilveren Griffel Award
Emma Eigenraam, our consultant of Library at School, who was part of the jury, presented this year's Zilveren Griffel award to Marit Tornqvist for her picture book Schildpad en ik.
Erna Winters rings the cheese market bell
Ringing the bell to open the weekly cheese market in Alkmaar is something you only get to do once in your life. It is an honor that is extended by invitation only.
It was very special that on July 28 this honor was bestowed on the director of the Kennemerwaard Library and ABC Huis, together with a number of colleagues from ABC Huis. The invitation came from Councilor Jasper Nieuwenhuizen, who by doing so expressed his appreciation for the work of ABC Huis, Artiance and Kennemerwaard Library.
Merger with Langedijk Library
Langedijk Library and Kennemerwaard Library merged on January 1, 2023. Since that date, all library work in the municipality of Dijk en Waard has been provided under the name Kennemerwaard Library. The municipality has made a generous promise of additional financing. This is necessary to expand the library work in Langedijk with services that residents and institutions of Heerhugowaard already had access to.
Due to the merger, members of the former Langedijk Library can now use a much larger collection. All residents of Dijk en Waard now have access to the same services. This means, among other things, expansion of activities that help strengthen people's digital skills. As a result, more and more people are learning to find their way in the digital world independently.
Since the merger, we are now also able to reach more people with language deficiencies. And now there is also support for education and childcare throughout Dijk and Waard. This translates into reading consultants at primary schools (Library at School) and BookStart consultants in childcare. This forms an important contribution to the language development and reading skills of children.
Castricum
In 2023, a lot of attention was paid to contacts maintained with the municipality of Castricum. In that municipality, the indexation of the subsidy has been too low for a number of years and this has had a negative impact on the library's operations. We gave a presentation to the municipal council and together with Stichting Welzijn Castricum en Toonbeeld we took the opportunity to speak during a council meeting. These efforts were aimed at providing insight into the issues of insufficient indexation and the consequences thereof for the service provision.
In 2024, we expect the municipal council to decide to grant the library a one-off budget to cover the deficit for that year.
International Collaboration
The year 2023 included several educational trips abroad.
NextLibrary
For example, Kennemerwaard Library was invited to hold an Ignite Talk during NextLibrary in May, in Aarhus, Denmark. NextLibrary is a biennial international gettogether of library professionals and decision-makers from across the globe, who focus on shifting the responsibilities and function of the public library of the future. Our Ignite Talk was about the JobFlow project, which is aimed at young people without a starting qualification. This was an opportunity for us to share our knowledge with domestic and foreign colleagues, and in turn we learned a lot from them.
Youth Orchestra
The Artiance Youth Orchestra went on an exchange to Bath in February, with a performance surrounding Truus Wijsmuller. The occasion is 450 years of the Netherlands (and Alkmaar Relief) and the theme of freedom. In addition to Artiance's Program Manager and the orchestra's permanent accompanists, the Director too was permitted to participate in this exchange program.
Lighthouse Libraries
Finally, a number of colleagues attended knowledge sessions on digital citizenship, digital innovation, digital sustainability and misinformation in Ghent and Lisbon. This was specially organized for the Lighthouse Libraries, of which Kennemerwaard Library is a part. Lighthouse Libraries is part of Public Libraries 2040, which is a group of innovative libraries working together in European funded projects and share their knowledge. The colleagues use the knowledge they gained during the knowledge sessions for local projects.
