CORNWALL COUNTY COUNCIL WINS AWARD

Cornwall County Council has won the BIC/CILIP RFID in Libraries Group Award for its implementation of 37 RFID units across 19 libraries. The Award was presented at the conference and followed by a special Showcase Presentation by the winners.

The implementation was achieved within an ambitious timescale and has delivered almost 100% self service at some libraries. How this was successfully achieved was subject of a special Showcase Presentation at the conference.

Cornwall is one of the least wealthy counties in the UK, which means the library service receives a smaller than average budget, yet book issues per 1,000 population is among the highest. One of the project's aims was to deliver an improved service while dealing with low budgets.

Area Strategic Manager Phil Kerridge formally received the Award and delivered the presentation at the conference, together with colleagues from the county's libraries team.

He says: "In Cornwall we are delighted with the Award. It's nice to be recognised, but the real credit belongs to the staff in our 19 self-service libraries who have adapted to a transformation in the way they work and maintained a high quality of customer service".

The BIC/RFID in Libraries Group Award is presented annually at the RFID in Libraries conference and recognises an innovation that has delivered significant benefit, or a new installation that has pioneered new technology/a new service in a public or academic library. Inaugural winner in 2007 was Nick Lewis, Head of Library Collections at the University of East Anglia.