2022

Mae CILIP Cymru Wales yn falch iawn o gyhoeddi enillwyr Gwobr Tîm y Flwyddyn Llyfrgell Cymru 2022: Grŵp hyfforddi, Gwasanaeth Llyfrgell a Gwybodaeth GIG Cymru/e-lyfrgell GIG Cymru. Gwnaeth Jason Thomas, Cyfarwyddwr, Diwylliant, Chwaraeon a Thwristiaeth, Llywodraeth Cymru, y cyhoeddiad yn ystod Cyfarfod Cyffredinol Blynyddol CILIP Cymru Wales ac achlysur gwobrwyo Tîm y Flwyddyn ar ddydd Iau 10 Tachwedd 2022. Dyfarnwyd yr ail safle i dîm Ymgysylltu Academaidd Prifysgol Aberystwyth.

Bod yn ystwyth yn llyfrgelloedd y GIG ledled Cymru

Grŵp hyfforddi, Gwasanaeth Llyfrgell a Gwybodaeth GIG Cymru/e-lyfrgell GIG Cymru, a enwebwyd gan Susan Prosser, yw enillydd Gwobr Tîm y Flwyddyn Llyfrgell Cymru 2022. Mae Gwasanaeth Llyfrgell a Gwybodaeth GIG Cymru (NHS WLKS) yn rhwydwaith o 24 o lyfrgelloedd wedi'u lleoli mewn ysbytai ledled Cymru sy'n gwasanaethu pob disgyblaeth a sector iechyd.

Fel llawer o bobl, mae staff llyfrgelloedd GIG Cymru wedi bod yn gweithio dan amodau anodd yn ystod pandemig COVID-19. Roedd angen cyfleoedd hyfforddi mwy hyblyg ar lawer o staff gofal iechyd gan nad oeddent yn gallu gadael eu gweithleoedd. Ymatebodd Gwasanaeth Llyfrgell a Gwybodaeth GIG Cymru (NHS WLKS) i’r her gan ddatblygu rhaglen hyfforddi genedlaethol o bell newydd ar gyfer eu defnyddwyr amrywiol. Gyda'i hagwedd hyblyg yn cydnabod bod yn rhaid i glinigwyr ganfod lle ar gyfer yr hyfforddiant yn eu hamserlen feichus, cafodd y rhaglen hyfforddi lefel uchel o ganmoliaeth ac adborth gan y rhai a’i mynychodd.

Dyfyniad gan arweinydd y prosiect neu Susan Prosser: Rwy’n falch iawn o glywed bod y cydweithio rhwng Llyfrgelloedd GIG Cymru a’r e-lyfrgell wedi’i gydnabod gyda’r wobr hon am eu rhaglen arloesol o hyfforddiant byw a ddarparwyd i staff y GIG ledled Cymru. Gweithiodd y tîm yn hynod o galed i sicrhau bod y rhain yn cael eu cyflwyno ac roedd yr adborth yn hynod gadarnhaol. Mae'r wobr yn hwb mawr i forâl!

Cyflwynwyd Gwobr Tîm y Flwyddyn Llyfrgell Cymru gan Jason Thomas, Cyfarwyddwr, Diwylliant, Chwaraeon a Thwristiaeth yn Niwrnod Agored a Chyfarfod Cyffredinol Blynyddol CILIP Cymru Wales ar ddydd Iau 10 Tachwedd 2022 oedd yn dathlu llwyddiannau proffesiynol eithriadol gan dimau sy’n gweithio o fewn gwasanaethau llyfrgell a gwybodaeth yng Nghymru.

Fel cyflwynydd Gwobr Tîm y Flwyddyn Llyfrgell Cymru , dywedodd Jason: “ “Roeddwn yn falch iawn o gael gwahoddiad i gyhoeddi enillwyr Gwobrau Tîm y Flwyddyn Llyfrgell Cymru. Hoffwn ddiolch yn fawr iawn i holl staff y llyfrgell sy'n gweithio'n hynod o galed i ddarparu gwasanaethau gwych i unigolion a chymunedau. Rwy'n gweld yr ymroddiad hwn drosof fy hun yn fy llyfrgell leol a gwn ei fod hynny’n cael ei ailadrodd ledled y wlad.

Mae’r rhaglen hyfforddi a ddarperir gan Wasanaeth Llyfrgell a Gwybodaeth GIG Cymru yn enghraifft wych o sut mae llyfrgellwyr yn chwarae rhan mor werthfawr wrth gefnogi unigolion yn eu dysgu proffesiynol. Fe wnaeth y fenter ragorol hon helpu clinigwyr sy’n gweithio ar draws GIG Cymru i wella eu gwybodaeth a’u sgiliau ar adeg dyngedfennol. Dangosodd staff llyfrgelloedd y GIG ystwythder, dyfeisgarwch, ac ymrwymiad mawr i'w defnyddwyr wrth ddatblygu'r rhaglen arloesol yma. Maent yn llwyr deilyngu’r wobr hon”

Ychwanegodd Cadeirydd CILIP Cymru Wales, Lou Peck, “Bob blwyddyn rwy'n cael fy atgoffa am y gymuned lyfrgell anhygoel a gwerthfawr sydd gennym yma yng Nghymru. Mae Gwobr Tîm y Flwyddyn Llyfrgell Cymru yn gyfle i dimau llyfrgelloedd ledled Cymru dynnu sylw at eu llwyddiannau ac unrhyw wersi a ddysgwyd. Mae'n gyfle gwych i gael cipolwg ar brosiectau sy'n mynd rhagddynt, na fyddem yn clywed amdanynt fel arall.

Llongyfarchiadau mawr i bawb a gymerodd ran yn y Wobr eleni gan ddangos ystwythder, arloesedd a dulliau cynaliadwy o sicrhau gwasanaethau llyfrgell hanfodol ar gyfer y dyfodol”.

Panel beirniaid Tîm y Flwyddyn Llyfrgell Cymru CILIP Cymru Wales 2022

Gwnaeth y pedwar enwebiad argraff ar feirniaid 2022, gan amlygu’r gwaith rhagorol sy’n digwydd ar draws llyfrgelloedd Cymru:
Robin Armstrong Viner, Cyfarwyddwr Cyswllt: Pennaeth Llyfrgelloedd, Prifysgol Abertawe
Andrew Eynon, Rheolwr Llyfrgell a TGD, Grŵp Llandrillo Menai
Helgard Krause, Prif Weithredwr, Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru

Sylw’r beirniaid: “Mae staff llyfrgelloedd y GIG yng Nghymru wedi bod yn gweithio dan amodau heriol yn ystod pandemig COVID-19 ac roedd hwn yn enwebiad cryf yn cyflwyno achos cadarn iawn dros pam mae’r tîm yn haeddu’r wobr hon. Datblygodd y tîm raglen hyfforddi newydd gan ddechrau o’r dechrau, yn ystod cyfnod heriol i staff y GIG, a chyflwynwyd y rhaglen i grŵp amrywiol o ddefnyddwyr. Roedd yr enwebiad yn cynnwys enghreifftiau o adborth defnyddwyr a oedd yn dangos bod cynnwys yr hyfforddiant a'r dull cyflwyno yn bodloni anghenion defnyddwyr ac wedi arwain at lefelau uchel o foddhad ymhlith y rhai a’i mynychodd. Llwyddiant y rhaglen oedd hyblygrwydd yr amseriad a'r dyddiadau gan gydnabod yr angen i glinigwyr ganfod lle ar gyfer yr hyfforddiant mewn amserlen brysur, yn ogystal â'r arddangosiadau byw a rhyngweithio gyda'r mynychwyr.

Uwchsgilio myfyrwyr gydag adnoddau dwyieithog cryno sy'n rhwydd i fyfyrwyr eu defnyddio

Dyfarnodd y beirniaid yr ail safle a gwobr ariannol o £350 i dîm Ymgysylltu Academaidd Prifysgol Aberystwyth, a enwebwyd gan Lloyd Roderick. Gall yr arfer o ddarparu dyfyniadau a chyfeirnodi cywir ar gyfer aseiniadau prifysgol fod yn brofiad sy’n peri braw i lawer o fyfyrwyr. Er mwyn codi ymwybyddiaeth o theori ac arfer dyfynnu a chyfeirnodi cywir, adeiladodd y tîm Ymgysylltu Academaidd ganllaw llyfrgell dwyieithog (Cymraeg a Saesneg) oedd yn cynnwys amrywiaeth gynhwysfawr o adnoddau cryno sy’n addas i fyfyrwyr gyda’r nod o geisio lleihau’r pryder sy’n aml yn gysylltiedig â chyfeirnodi.

Dyfyniad gan Lloyd Roderick: “Bu’r Tîm Ymgysylltu Academaidd ym Mhrifysgol Aberystwyth yn gweithio’n galed i ddatblygu, adeiladu, profi, lansio, a hyrwyddo’r Canllaw a Chwis ar Ymwybyddiaeth Cyfeirnodi a Llên-ladrad, ac rydym wedi bod yn falch iawn o’r ymateb iddo gan fyfyrwyr a staff ar draws y brifysgol. Mae cael y gwaith hwn wedi’i gydnabod gan wobr gan CILIP Cymru Wales yn benllanw gwych i’r prosiect.”

Dywedodd y beirniaid: “Cynlluniodd y tîm adnodd hyfforddi newydd ar gyfer cyfeirnodi. Mae'r adnodd yn rhyngweithiol ac yn gwbl ddwyieithog, wedi'i integreiddio i systemau dysgu myfyrwyr a gellir ei deilwra i wahanol anghenion myfyrwyr. Roedd llwyddiant datblygiad yr adnoddau hyfforddi newydd hyn yn cydnabod bod cyflwyno llwyddiannus yn dibynnu ar gael y defnyddwyr i gymryd rhan. Roedd yn amlwg bod gan y tîm ddealltwriaeth wirioneddol o sut y byddai myfyrwyr yn ymwneud â'r cynnwys a beth fyddai'n lleihau pryder wrth gyfeirnodi. Mae'r enwebiad yn disgrifio sut y bu i'r tîm gydweithio'n dda ar draws y brifysgol. Roedd yr adnodd newydd yn allbwn prosiect llwyddiannus, ond y canlyniad cadarnhaol arall oedd y partneriaethau a ddatblygwyd ar draws y brifysgol a fydd yn codi proffil y llyfrgell”.

 

CILIP Cymru Wales is delighted to announce the winner of the Welsh Library Team of the Year Award 2022: Training group, NHS Wales Library & Knowledge Service/NHS Wales e-library. Jason Thomas, Director, Culture, Sport & Tourism, Welsh Government, made the announcement during the CILIP Cymru Wales AGM and Team of the Year Award event on Thursday 10 November 2022. Second place was awarded to the Academic Engagement team at Aberystwyth University.

Being agile in NHS libraries across Wales

Training group, NHS Wales Library & Knowledge Service/NHS Wales e-library, nominated by Susan Prosser, is the winner of the Welsh Library Team of the Year Award 2022. The NHS Wales Library & Knowledge Service (NHS WLKS) is a network of 24 libraries based in hospitals across Wales serving all disciplines and health sectors.

Like many, NHS Wales library staff have been working under difficult conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many healthcare staff needed more flexible training opportunities as they were unable to leave their workplaces. The NHS Wales Library & Knowledge Service (NHS WLKS) rose to the challenge and developed a new remote national training programme from scratch for their diverse users. With its flexible approach recognising that clinicians have to fit the training around their demanding schedule, the training programme received a high level of attendee satisfaction and feedback.

Susan Prosser said:”I am delighted to learn that the collaboration between NHS Wales Libraries and the e- library has been recognised with this award for their innovative programme of live training delivered to NHS staff across Wales. The team worked incredibly hard to get these delivered and feedback was extremely positive. The award is a great boost to morale!”.

The Welsh Library Team of the Year Award was presented by Jason Thomas, Director, Culture, Sport & Tourism at CILIP Cymru Wales’ Open Day and AGM on Thursday 10 November 2022 celebrating outstanding professional achievements by teams working within library and information services in Wales.

As a presenter of the Welsh Library Team of the Year Award, Jason comments: “I was delighted to be asked to announce the winners of the Welsh Library Team of the Year Awards. I want to say a big thank you to all the library staff working incredibly hard to deliver fantastic services to individuals and communities. I see this dedication first-hand at my own local library and I know it is replicated all over the country.

The training programme provided by NHS Wales Library & Knowledge Service is a great example of how librarians play such a valuable role in supporting individuals in their professional learning. This excellent initiative helped clinicians working across NHS Wales to improve their knowledge and skills at a critical time. The NHS library staff demonstrated agility, resourcefulness, and great commitment to their users in developing this innovative programme. They are very worthy recipients of this award”.

CILIP Cymru Wales Chair Lou Peck adds “Every year I am reminded what an incredible and valuable library community we have here in Wales.The Welsh Library Team of the Year Award is an opportunity for library teams across Wales to shout about their successes and even lessons learned. It’s an amazing opportunity to have a peep into projects that go on, that we otherwise would not hear about.

Huge congratulations to all taking part in this year’s Award demonstrating agility, innovation and sustainable approaches to future-proof essential library services”.

The 2022 CILIP Cymru Wales Welsh Library Team of the Year Award judging panel
The 2022 judges were impressed by all four nominations, demonstrating excellent work across libraries in Wales:

Robin Armstrong Viner, Associate Director: Head of Libraries, Swansea University
Andrew Eynon, Library & ILT manager, Grŵp Llandrillo Menai
Helgard Krause, Chief Executive, Books Council of Wales

The judges commented “NHS libraries staff in Wales have been working under challenging conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic and this was a strong nomination making a compelling case for why the team deserve this award. The team developed a new training programme from scratch, during challenging times for NHS staff, and delivered this to a diverse group of users. The nomination included examples of user feedback demonstrating that the training content and mode of delivery met user needs and resulted in high satisfaction from attendees. The success of the programme was the flexibility of the timing and dates recognising the need for clinicians to fit the training into a busy schedule, as well as the live demos and interaction with attendees.

Upskilling students with bite-sized student friendly bilingual resources

The judges awarded second place to the Academic Engagement team at Aberystwyth University, nominated by Lloyd Roderick, who will receive £350. The practice of providing accurate citations and references for university assignments can be a daunting prospect for many students. To raise awareness of both the theory and the practice of proper citation and referencing, the Academic Engagement team has built a bilingual (Welsh and English) library guide where a comprehensive array of bite-sized, student-friendly resources aims to take some of the anxiety out of referencing.

Lloyd Roderick said: ”The Academic Engagement Team at Aberystwyth University worked hard to develop, build, test, launch, and promote the Referencing and Plagiarism Awareness Guide and Quiz, and we have been delighted by the response to it from students and staff across the university. To have this work recognised by an award from CILIP Cymru Wales is a fantastic culmination to the project.”.

The judges commented “The team designed a new training resource on referencing. The resource is interactive and fully bilingual, is integrated into student learning systems and can be tailored to different student needs. The success of the development of these new training resources was the recognition that successful delivery relied on getting the users involved. It was clear that the team had a real understanding how students would relate to the content and what would reduce referencing-anxiety. The nomination describes how the team collaborated well across the university. The new resource was a successful project output, but the other positive result was the partnerships that were developed across the university which will raise the profile of the library”.

2021

Dewiswyd rhaglen hyfforddi a datblygu Estyn Allan fel enillydd Gwobr Tîm y Flwyddyn Llyfrgell Cymru CILIP Cymru Wales. Dyfarnwyd yr ail safle yn gydradd i Wasanaeth Llyfrgell Coleg Sir Gâr a Gwasanaeth Llyfrgell a Thechnoleg Dysgu Grŵp Llandrillo Menai, a’r trydydd safle i grŵp EDI WHELF (Fforwm Llyfrgelloedd Addysg Uwch Cymru).

Wedi’i ariannu gan grant o £169,950 gan Lywodraeth Cymru, a sicrhawyd gan Gymdeithas y Prif Lyfrgellwyr (SCL) yng Nghymru, aeth Estyn Allan yn fyw ym mis Ionawr 2021 ac mae eisoes wedi gweld nifer trawiadol o ddefnyddwyr ar draws 22 llyfrgell gyhoeddus gyda 33 hyfforddai. Mae Estyn Allan yn datblygu sgiliau, gwybodaeth a hyder staff wrth ddarparu gweithgareddau digidol dwyieithog mewn llyfrgelloedd ledled Cymru ac mae wedi cael ei gydnabod gan CILIP Cymru Wales am ei waith yn meithrin hyder ac arloesi yn 2021.

Wedi’i enwebu gan Helen Pridham o Ymddiriedolaeth Ddiwylliannol Awen, arweiniwyd Estyn Allan gan Bethan Hughes, Prif Lyfrgellydd Cyngor Sir Ddinbych a chafodd ei drefnu, ei gynllunio a’i ddarparu gan Kerry Pillai o Lyfrgelloedd Abertawe. Rhwng mis Ionawr a mis Mawrth 2021 datblygodd yr hyfforddeion sgiliau digidol newydd a chydweithio i greu cynnwys sy’n wynebu’r cyhoedd, gan drawsnewid cynnig gweithgaredd digidol llyfrgelloedd cyhoeddus Cymru.

Dywed Helen Pridham: “Mi ddysgodd tîm Estyn Allan i gyfweld, ffilmio, recordio, golygu, cyhoeddi, dylunio a rhoi cyhoeddusrwydd. Mi wnaethon nhw ymddangos o flaen camera yn cyfweld awduron, rhedeg grwpiau darllen, cynnal digwyddiadau byw, canu rhigymau, ac adrodd straeon.

Er enghraifft, creodd y tîm bedair ffilm fer a ddefnyddiwyd mewn ysgolion, gyda phartneriaid ac ar gyfryngau cymdeithasol i hyrwyddo hysbysebion Her Darllen yr Haf gyda Iolo Williams. Dyma’r tro cyntaf i Ymgyrch Ddarllen yr Haf gael ei hyrwyddo’n genedlaethol yn benodol i Gymru a chafodd dderbyniad da iawn.”

Wrth gyflwyno Gwobr Tîm y Flwyddyn Llyfrgell Cymru, dywedodd y Gweinidog: “Mae rhaglen hyfforddi Estyn Allan yn enghraifft wych o sut y gall llyfrgelloedd ledled Cymru weithio gyda'i gilydd i wella gwasanaethau. Mae wedi datblygu sgiliau, gwybodaeth a hyder staff wrth ddarparu gweithgareddau digidol dwyieithog a hyrwyddo cynigion a gwasanaethau llyfrgell. Cafwyd nifer uchel o enwebiadau rhagorol ac hoffwn achub ar y cyfle i ddiolch yn fawr i bawb yn ein llyfrgelloedd sy'n gweithio mor galed i ddarparu gwasanaethau cyhoeddus mor hanfodol."

Nododd y beirniaid “Cryfder yr enwebiad hwn yw ei fod yn dathlu dewrder ac ymrwymiad y staff a gymerodd ran yn y rhaglen a’r rhai a arweiniodd y tîm yn y grŵp llywio. Mae’r rhaglen wedi galluogi mwy o gydweithredu ar draws llyfrgelloedd cyhoeddus yng Nghymru, wedi arwain at lansio gwasanaethau a chynnyrch digidol newydd dwyieithog a phenodol yn y Gymraeg, wedi uwchsgilio staff, ac wedi adeiladu’r momentwm ar gyfer prosiectau yn y dyfodol.”

Dyfarnodd y beirniaid yr ail safle yn gydradd i Wasanaeth Llyfrgell Coleg Sir Gâr a enwebwyd gan Mike Williams a Gwasanaeth Llyfrgell a Thechnoleg Dysgu Grŵp Llandrillo Menai, a enwebwyd gan Ceri Powell.

Yn ogystal ag uwchsgilio’r tîm yn ystod COVID-19 a chofleidio Sgiliau Gweithle Google, cododd Coleg Sir Gâr ymwybyddiaeth o Lwyfan Addysg CLA, troi at Glicio a Chasglu, sefydlu Desg Gymorth Llyfrgell Rithwir, a chreu Clipiau Cyflym Llyfrgell, sef clipiau fideo dwyieithog byr ar ystod o bynciau.

Ymatebodd y Gwasanaeth Llyfrgell a Thechnoleg Dysgu yng Ngrŵp Llandrillo Menai i COVID trwy sefydlu tîm Technoleg Llyfrgell i gefnogi dysgwyr a staff. Yn ogystal â sesiynau un i un a grŵp, roedd y tîm yn allweddol i’r Gynhadledd Addysgu a Dysgu hybrid gyntaf. Creodd y tîm Safle Sgiliau Astudio dwyieithog newydd a chanllawiau pwnc ar-lein a chydlynu prosiect i gyflenwi dros fil o ddyfeisiau i fyfyrwyr er mwyn hwyluso dysgu gartref.

Dywed y beirniaid: "Mae’r ddau Wasanaeth Llyfrgell wedi ailddyfeisio eu gwasanaethau ar-lein, ac maent yn ganolog i waith eu sefydliadau wrth bontio’r rhaniad digidol a dod â thechnoleg ddigidol i’w holl fyfyrwyr gan gynnwys dysgwyr difreintiedig ac anhraddodiadol."

Dyfarnodd y beirniaid y trydydd safle i grŵp WHELF EDI, a enwebwyd gan Alison Harding o Brifysgol Cymru, y Drindod Dewi Sant. Sefydlwyd Grŵp Cydraddoldeb, Amrywiaeth a Chynhwysiant Fforwm Llyfrgelloedd Addysg Uwch Cymru yn ystod haf 2020 yn dilyn llofruddiaeth George Floyd er mwyn adlewyrchu safbwynt gwrth-hiliol ac i ddarparu cyfleoedd datblygu i staff. Yna agorodd y gynhadledd Lleisiau Eithriedig y sgwrs i’r sector ledled Cymru a thu hwnt ac yn yr un modd mae’r grŵp yn ceisio ehangu ei aelodaeth.

Dywedodd y beirniaid “Rydym yn cydnabod y dewrder a’r fenter i ddechrau gweithredu er mwyn ysgogi newid cadarnhaol, ac i herio’r status quo. Rydym yn gobeithio y bydd cysylltiadau’n parhau i gael eu gwneud gyda’r sector Orielau, Llyfrgelloedd, Archifau ac Amgueddfeydd (GLAM) ehangach ledled Cymru, ac rydym yn gobeithio y gallwn ni i gyd weithio gyda’n gilydd i gynyddu amrywiaeth a chynrychiolaeth ar bob lefel.”

 

The Estyn Allan training and development programme has been selected as first place in the CILIP Cymru Wales Welsh Library Team of the Year Award. Joint second place was awarded to Coleg Sir Gâr Library Service and the Grŵp Llandrillo Menai Library & Learning Technology Service, and third place to the WHELF (Wales Higher Education Libraries Forum) EDI group.

Funded by a Welsh Government grant of £169,950, secured by The Society of Chief Librarians (SCL) in Wales, Estyn Allan went live in January 2021 and has already seen impressive take up from across 22 public libraries with 33 trainees. Estyn Allan develops staff skills, knowledge, and confidence in delivering bilingual digital activities in libraries across Wales and has been recognised by CILIP Cymru Wales for its innovative and confidence building work in 2021.

Nominated by Helen Pridham from the Awen Cultural Trust, Estyn Allan was led by Bethan Hughes, Principal Librarian of Denbighshire County Council and organised, planned, and delivered by Kerry Pillai from Swansea Libraries. Between January and March 2021 the trainees developed new digital skills and worked together to create public facing content, transforming the digital activity offer of Wales’ public libraries.

Helen Pridham says “The Estyn Allan team learnt to interview, film, record, edit, publish, design, and publicise. They appeared in front of camera interviewing authors, running reading groups, hosting live events, singing rhymes, and telling stories.

The team pulled together four short films, for example, that were used in schools, with partners and on social media to promote the Summer Reading Challenge adverts with Iolo Williams. This is the first time there has been a Wales-specific national promotion of the Summer Reading Challenge and it was very well received.”

As well as upskilling the team during COVID-19 and embracing Google’s Workspace Skills, Coleg Sir Gâr raised awareness of the CLA Education Platform, pivoted to Click and Collect, established a Virtual Library Helpdesk, and created Library Quick Clips, short bilingual video clips on a range of topics.

The Library and Learning Technology Service at Grŵp Llandrillo Menai responded to COVID by establishing a Library Technology team to support learners and staff. As well as one-to-one and group sessions, the team were instrumental to the first hybrid Teaching and Learning Conference. The team created a new bilingual Study Skills Site and online subject guides and coordinated a project to supply over a thousand devices to students to facilitate learning from home.

The judges state “Both Library Services have reinvented their online services, and they are at the very centre of the work of their institutions in bridging the digital divide and bringing digital technology to all their students including disadvantaged and non-traditional learners.”

The judges awarded third place to the WHELF EDI group, nominated by Alison Harding of University of Wales Trinity Saint David.

The Wales Higher Education Libraries Forum Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Group was established in the summer of 2020 following the murder of George Floyd to reflect an anti-racist position and to provide development opportunities for staff. The Excluded Voices conference then opened out the conversation to the sector across Wales and beyond and the group is similarly looking to extend its membership.

The judges said “We recognise the bravery and initiative to start action to impact positive change, and to challenge the status quo. We hope that links will continue to be made with the wider GLAM (Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums) sector across Wales, and we hope that we can all work together to increase diversity and representation at all levels.”

2020

NHS Wales and Library Knowledge Service and Newtown Area Library take joint first place in Welsh Library Team of the Year Award

NHS Wales Library and Knowledge Service and Newtown Area Library have been recognized by CILIP Cymru Wales, the Library and Information association in Wales, for their incredible commitment and innovative services during a turbulent 2020.

Susan Prosser from Swansea Bay University Health Board nominated the NHS Wales Library and Knowledge Service, and praised how, “The network of 24 libraries based in hospitals has responded to the challenge of the COVID pandemic by supporting healthcare staff and keeping library services and spaces available for users.” “As well as collaboratively developing a new single point of access for service provision” Susan added, “the libraries have also contributed to good practice for adapting workplaces and library spaces.”

The judges praised the NHS Wales Library and Knowledge Service’s achievements: “The website created by Velindre NHST Library is an excellent example of what library staff can achieve in a short space of time. This year has been a challenging environment for us all, and NHS staff are working in a particularly pressurised climate.”

From a more familiar library setting, Maureen Jones, of Powys County Council nominated the Newtown Area Library Team because: “Although they have always had a dynamic team, in Covid 19 they delivered many new services, from calling customers over 70 to online quizzes and creative writing and poetry competitions.” Maureen continued, “the challenging shift from advising readers to choosing for them was also embraced by the team…and all this while overcoming IT barriers and tremendous uncertainty.”

The judges said that, “the Newtown team nomination really brought alive what the service was doing. Although the challenges of trying to fulfil basic services during a pandemic might have prevented them from feeling like they were improving services, in truth the innovative and enthusiastic way they have adapted to remote working has no doubt reached new users.”

The Runners Up

The runners up team was The Welsh Higher Education Library Forum (WHELF) Cataloguing Team, nominated by Alan Hughes from Cardiff University. Alan says “the WHELF cataloguing Team has had a transformational and refreshing impact on the reinvention of cataloguing activities across Wales and beyond.

The all-Wales partnership of 14 higher education and research institutions - through modest confidence, expertise and professional connections - have been able to penetrate far wider and influential networks. Alan was blown over by their ability to rebrand a traditionally hidden and solitary activity into a front-facing force with Wales at the helm of the sector.”