Meet the CILIP NE RMN committee: Jackie McGuire

What is your role on the committee? 

I'm an Ordinary Member on the committee so my main role is to attend meetings, support events and act as a link between north east CILIP and health libraries in the north. I joined the committee about 6 years ago after another librarian from the health sector retired and I felt that this was a gap that needed to be filled. As well as being able to make that connection and share what is going on, I personally get a lot out of meeting with people working in different sectors and the CPD offered. 

What is your day job?

I'm the Library & Knowledge Services Lead for Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust where I have worked for over 20 years. There are 4 libraries at the main hospital sites in North Shields, Cramlington, Ashington and Hexham with a fifth opening in 2023. We provide educational and health/medical resources to all Trust staff and students on placement and services such as training, current awareness and literature searching. We also manage the Trust clinical guidelines service and work closely with education and health and well-being teams, encouraging everyone to read and have developed extensive collections of fiction and non-fiction books to support this and are definitely far more than the “Drs library” that we were when I first started working here. 

What are your other interests? 

I used to like to travel but have become a bit more of a home bird, partly as I get older and I think also because of the last few years. I love watching sporting events and I like to swim and walk (although having a dog with very short legs limits the distance at times). I recently bought a “holiday home” (actually a static caravan but never referred to in those terms by park staff!) in Northumberland. Despite also living in Northumberland, this is the excuse to go somewhere that is next to the beach away from everything and take the time to read, knit and crochet without normal interreferences of daily life!

Meet the CILIP NE RMN committee: Leanne Young

We wanted to introduce our committee members and enable them to share their experience of being a part of the North East Regional Member Network. Inspired by the CILIP Information Literacy Group we'll be asking our committee members some question. 

Thanks to the Information Literacy Group who have kindly let us re-use the questions they use on their blog.

Leanne Young

What is your role on the committee?

I'm currently the Digital Champion so my main role is editing the CILIP North East webpages and creating the event registration pages for our events. Until very recently I was also the Chair of the committee for almost two years.

I also contribute to ordinary committee member activities like organising and running events and contributing to social media.

When did you join and why?

I joined the committee in March 2019. I'd previously been a member of ARLG North East for quite a long time and after a few committee free years I decided to dive back in. As much as I like my job it doesn't often afford the development opportunities you get being on a committee - for example the range of skills you acquire when organising an a larger CPD event. 

What do you do in your role?

As Chair I did my best to make sure we were aligned with CILIP strategy, I chaired meetings, recruited committee members, wrote business plans and I hope) provided support to colleagues on the committee.

As Digital Champion my main role is updating our web pages and creating the event registration pages for our events. I support colleagues on the committee when they are using the system to manage events. In the absence of a Social Media Officer I've also been scheduling our social media posts - this includes creating graphics on Canva and writing tweets/Facebook posts. 

What is your day job?

I'm the Distance Services Librarian and Academic Liaison Librarian for Tourism at the University of Sunderland. I lead the library support for distance learners and liaise with faculty regarding supporting students, collection development, study skills and more. I teach information literacy skills in person an online to students all over the world.

What are your other interests?

I like travelling (obviously I haven't done a lot of that over the last couple of years although I am headed to New Jersey & New York this summer - hurray!) and I like hiking. I can often be found wandering around woods when I need to relax. I also like doing handstands, and I think I'm getting better at balancing but it's very slow going. I've been vegan for 14 years and was a vegetarian for 15 years before that so I'm passionate about animals and treating them all well - not just pets.

Meet the committee - Suzie Williams

We wanted to introduce our committee members and enable them to share their experience of being a part of the North East Regional Member Network. Inspired by the CILIP Information Literacy Group we'll be asking our committee members some questions. 

Thanks to the Information Literacy Group who have kindly let us re-use the questions they use on their blog.

What is your day job?

My role at the University of Sunderland is as an Academic Liaison Librarian for our art, design and performing arts programmes. This involves supporting our students and staff in those areas, doing information literacy teaching to groups and individuals, liaising with academic colleagues, collection development and much more! I am also Chair of our library’s Staff Development Group which along with the rest of the group involves me in promoting and organizing staff development opportunities for our staff.

What is your role on the committee?

I am the Secretary of the North East Regional Network committee. 

When did you join and why?

Previously I had been on the CILIP Academic and Research Libraries Group north-east committee for nine years, mainly as Secretary and Chair. I joined that committee as I had recently relocated to the north east and wanted to get to know other library and information professionals in the region. I decided to train to be a CILIP mentor for Professional Registration so focused on that role whilst I took on my first mentee. I joined this committee as Secretary in November 2019 as I wanted to get involved in a local group again as I love meeting up with people and hearing about their library services. The Regional Member Network is cross-sectoral and I am really enjoying learning about what is happening in non-university libraries.

What do you do in your role?

I keep the committee in check! A significant part of my role is to arrange committee meetings, servicing those meetings by preparing papers and writing minutes, and taking on related activities. Along with the rest of the committee I take part in organizing our events – this year I have organized and hosted two webinars with John Vincent on social justice and diversity in the profession. Recently I introduced an annual planning meeting each summer where we brainstorm potential ideas for events and visit, using a Padlet to help prepare for this and present these in a visual manner. This helps us with managing our events to ensure we have a wide range of events relevant to a wide range of library and information professionals in many different sectors.

What are your other interests?

Outside work my garden is my happy place! I have gardened since I was really small, and enjoy pottering round, growing vegetables and enjoying a cuppa and reading my book in between jobs 😊. I volunteer with my local Methodist church doing our web site, have recently joined the leadership team and taken on responsibility for helping keeping the church garden maintained. Music is another love and I enjoy singing in my church, online through several virtual choirs that were set up during lockdown and in a local choir in Durham.

Meet the CILIP NE RMN committee: Beth Houlis

We wanted to introduce our committee members and enable them to share their experience of being a part of the North East Regional Member Network. Inspired by the CILIP Information Literacy Group we'll be asking our committee members some question. 

Thanks to the Information Literacy Group who have kindly let us re-use the questions they use on their blog.

Beth Houlis

What is your role on the committee?

I am the treasurer on the North East Regional Network committee.

When did you join and why?

I joined the committee in January 2020 after being invited to observe a meeting by my colleague, Holly, who was the Vice-Chair at the time. I was very new to the Library world and thought the committee would provide an opportunity to network outside of my institution and develop new skills that I might not have the chance to cultivate in my day job. 

I initially joined as an Ordinary Member but a few months later I decided to put myself forward for the Treasurer vacancy. This was a big jump for me as I had never been responsible for a committee’s finances but the support I received from the previous treasurer, Keith, and the patience of the rest of the committee helped make it easy to settle into the role (even during lockdown!).

What do you do in your role?

As the Treasurer, I lead the committee in financial matters by monitoring cashflow and advising on financial decision-making to ensure that the member network assets are healthy. I make sure that the committee is aware of the overall financial picture by presenting financial reports at our RMN meetings.

The busiest times for a treasurer are during the organisation of an event and in the New Year when the annual report is due. 

Aside from dealing with finances, I have also had the opportunity to take part in managing the committee’s events either by organising them or managing the chat during the actual event. 

What is your day job?

I am a Reading Lists Assistant at Northumbria University Library. In our team, we support academics in delivering and developing their online reading lists. Part of my job is to provide training on how to use our electronic reading lists and demonstrate the best ways to encourage students to engage with the module reading. I am also responsible for reviewing the lists and ensuring that we have access to all the items by ordering them from our suppliers. I also check for electronic versions in line with our digital first policy, check for new editions and ensure that we are in line with copyright when linking to webpages. Once the books have arrived in the Library, I am also responsible for processing them so they are available on our library shelves as soon as possible.

What are your other interests?

I spend a lot of my spare time with my nose stuck in a book whilst trying out new coffee shops. I’m lucky to live near a gorgeous park so try and go for walks there as much as I can.

I’ve just bought my first home so am looking forward to learning some DIY and gardening skills over the next few months. Oh, and filling my flat with lots of new books!  

Meet the CILIP NE RMN committee: Louise Masson

We wanted to introduce our committee members and enable them to share their experience of being a part of the North East Regional Member Network. Inspired by the CILIP Information Literacy Group we'll be asking our committee members some question. 

Thanks to the Information Literacy Group who have kindly let us re-use the questions they use on their blog.

Louise Masson

What is your role on the committee?                                                              

I am an ordinary member on the North East Regional Network committee. 

When did you join and why?

I have been a member of this committee as it has evolved over the years. I was orginally part of the Career Development Group North East serving as secretary and chair during that time. I was also involve at National level serving as the Marketing Officer. This local group then merged with the NECILIP branch in March 2014 and I decided to continue as part of the committee under it's new name as a Regional Member Network. 

Orginally I was introduced to the group by a work colleague who was part of the committee. It was a great way at the start of my career to meet professionals outside of my organisation and I have always loved hearing about challenges and projects in other libraries. It has also helped to build up a wide range of networks in the North East for public, voluntary and charity based libraries. 

What do you do in your role?

I regularly attend committee meetings, online or in-person, and contribute to planning events and brainstorming ideas for us to run. In 2022 I organised our annual conference; all the logistics from planning the programme, organising speakers, liaising with delegates and advertising. 

What is your day job?

I am a Faculty Liaison Librarian based at the Philip Robinson Library at Newcastle University. I manage the subject team which supports Social Sciences. This involves collection management, benchmarking resources, meeting with academics to understanding programme needs, helping students with dissertations and looking for information, managing our resource budget, overseeing reading lists, delivering teaching sessions, creating online resources such as videos. It is a very diverse role in helping to shape the library services and offering support and guidance to our academics, researchers and students. 

What are your other interests?

Since having children I've embraced listening to audiobooks (multi tasking whilst pushing a pram!) and reading magazines on my phone whilst waiting for swimming classes to end. Both of which provided by my local public library for free. I also enjoy travelling and visiting different places although again international travelled kerbed by the pandemic and the arrival of my 2 children. I'm now a specialist in researching play parks, caravan parks with kids enterntainment and child friendly restaurants I live by the coast so am a big fan of walks along the beach with an icecream as a reward. (regardless of the weather or the extent of the North Sea breeze)

Meet the CILIP NE RMN committee: Nichola Davey

We wanted to introduce our committee members and enable them to share their experience of being a part of the North East Regional Member Network. Inspired by the CILIP Information Literacy Group we'll be asking our committee members some question. 

Thanks to the Information Literacy Group who have kindly let us re-use the questions they use on their blog.

Nichola Davey

What is your role on the committee?

I am an ordinary member on the North East Regional Network committee. 

When did you join and why?

I joined the committee of the Career Development Group North East back in September 2012. I went on to chair the committee between November 2012 until the CDG NE merged with NE CILIP in March 2014 to form the Regional Member Network as we now know it. I have also been co-editor of the Website. 

I joined the committee initially as it was suggested by my Chartership mentor. She advised it was a good way to get a full understanding of the wider profession. Being a member of the committee has given me lots of opportunities and has given me valuable contact with other Library professionals in the region. It has helped me with building my CV and subsequent career progression. 

What do you do in your role?

I attend committee meetings, online or in-person, and contribute to planning events. I am currently liaising with speakers for this years AGM. 

What is your day job?

I am a Librarian for Stockton-on-Tees Library and Information service. I manage two sites in Billingham and Roseworth. My role includes stock selection (adult fiction), staff management, reader development, delivering events and activities onsite and outreach work, including regular class visits to our local schools from Nursery through to year 6. 

What are your other interests?

I have a range of interests including crafts (my current obsession is needle-felting) and spending time in nature. During the first lockdown I became really keen on gardening and I love growing fruit and vegetables. I have 4 children so my free time is somewhat limited but I enjoy time out each week when I go to choir and have great fun there.