CILIP NE Visit to Kittiwake Trust Multilingual Library

In summer 2024 Amina Marix Evans hosted a CILIP North East a visit to the Kittiwake Trust Multilingual Library in Gateshead, the first Library of Sanctuary. It has over 22,000 books for adults and children, in more than 140 dialects and languages. Subjects range from fiction to biography, sport, crafts, art, travel, poetry, history, music.... you name it and it's quite probably on a shelf somewhere. Some resources are donated by publishers, some are donated by individuals. 

The resources in the library are organised by country, indicated by a map showing which country is represented on which shelf - no words are used so language isn’t a barrier for those using the collections. Potential cultural challenges are faced head on - eg,  Geordie books are prominent so that people don’t see the library as ‘only for foreigners’ but for locals as well; there are 107 translations of the Gruffalo; Arabic and Hebrew books are shelved next to each other. Roma and Gypsy books are located on a trolley and they are moved around the library to represent the communities about which those resources are written. 

 On our visit we gained insight into how people are encouraged to use the space. Parents are encouraged to come into the library with their children and read with them in the beautifully decorated extensive children’s area. A piano sits in the library and anyone is welcome to use it. A music group meets in the library on a Tuesday afternoon. Cookbooks are located near an area of comfy seating to encourage people to talk with each other about what they enjoy cooking. Games and puzzles are available for people to have fun with each other and interact. Upstairs is a prayer room, a quiet room and a space available for hire. 

We ended our visit by sharing food we had all brought and shared our experiences of our visit to the library which was just delightful! Do go and visit the library to discover it for yourselves. The library is promoted through the Kittiwake web site, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube, so do follow the library if you’re on those platforms. Volunteers are always welcome - do contact the library to find out more about how to volunteer your time. 

Suzie Williams & Leanne Young