CILIP is pleased to have launched the new All Party Parliamentary Group for Libraries, Information and Knowledge (LInK), highlighting the value and impact of knowledge, information and libraries in the UK.

The APPG LInK brings together MPs and Peers from different parties with a shared focus on the contribution that knowledge, information and libraries make to the UK’s social, economic and industrial development.

You can find out more here about the focus of the APPG LInK and review the minutes of previous meetings.

Take action

The visibility and impact of local libraries has been transformed over the past 18 months, with a new online audience and a new, more vital and relevant role at the heart of their communities.

As the pandemic recedes, libraries are using this new-found sense of ambition and purpose to help rebuild local economies, support literacy recovery and to breathe new life into High Streets and Town Centres.

We are calling on members to help us to engage MPs in meetings of the APPG; the next session will be online on Tuesday 30 November at 1.00pm featuring a sector overview from CILIP followed by presentations on leading projects and innovations across the sector, including CILIP's Working Internationally for Libraries project, findings from our Tech Review into the impact of AI, machine learning, automation and robotics on the information profession and findings from The Reading Agency from their research into the role of libraries in reaching people with no fixed abode .

You can help us to engage with parliamentarians by writing to your local MP and encouraging them to attend the APPG LInK on 30th November.

Please find some suggested text for you to email to your MP below:

Dear [insert name of MP],

My name is [insert your name] and I am a constituent of [your constituency]. I am writing to you today to encourage you to attend the next meeting of the APPG for Libraries, Knowledge and Information on 30 November 2021 and to consider becoming a member of APPG LiNK.

This is something that is particularly important to me and the local community as a whole, especially as, over the past 18 months, libraries and the librarians who run them have been a lifeline for many people during the pandemic. Public libraries in particular have carried an incredible burden of keeping people entertained, connected and informed.

In schools, colleges and universities, libraries have led the ‘digital pivot’ – enabling learners to continue their education online. In the health sector, librarians and knowledge specialists have brought real-time evidence and data to the fight back against the pandemic.

Now, as the pandemic recedes, libraries are using this new-found sense of ambition and purpose to help rebuild local economies, support literacy recovery and to breathe new life into High Streets and Town Centres.

The APPG LiNK will showcase the current and future role of libraries, information and knowledge services and how they are addressing key policy priorities. I would strongly encourage you to attend and hope that we can count on your continued support for library services in our constituency.

Further details on the Libraries, Knowledge and Information APPG, including minutes from previous sessions can be obtained from: denise.hawkes@cilip.org.uk and at https://www.cilip.org.uk/APPGLInK.

Yours sincerely,

[your name]

You can use the Find your MP serivce to find the contact details for your local MP.