'Thank You' Event For Merton Library Volunteers

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More than 300 certificates are handed out

Merton Libraries hosted a thank you celebration to mark the excellent contribution volunteers have made to its service.

Recognising the outstanding contribution that volunteers make on a daily basis to improve library services, the celebration saw over 300 volunteers being awarded certificates of recognition.

The Mayor of Merton, Councillor Agatha Akyigyina presented special certificates to the volunteers who won awards for volunteer of the year, outstanding contribution, young volunteer of the year and volunteer team success.

Volunteers (many pictured below) undertake a wide variety of roles in Merton Libraries including meeting and greeting, supporting children's activities, helping customers use the IT facilities and helping to promote libraries in the community.

Over 300 volunteers have contributed their time to one of the seven libraries in Merton over the last year with 37,193 hours of volunteering being completed, the highest in any London library service. The initiative is a partnership between Merton Libraries and the Volunteer Centre Merton (VCM) who are part of Merton Voluntary Council Service.

This volunteering model has proven to be very successful and previously won the Team London ‘Building Stronger Neighbourhoods’ award for best practice in volunteer management and was also recognised as a Volunteering England good practice model.

Mayor of Merton, Councillor Agatha Akyigyina, said: "It was great to see so many volunteers being awarded for the value they add to our library service in Merton. I commend everyone who has given their time to our libraries and helped make them a great place to visit, well done."

To find out more about volunteering opportunities in Merton Libraries, visit www.merton.gov.uk/libraries.

August 1, 2014