Library fines scrapped for over 65s

Monday 26 March 2018

Pensioners will be able to get away scott-free if they return their library books late in the future.

Guille-Alles Library has announced its new initiative starting now "to encourage more people to use the library."

It follows the decision made in 2016 to scrap overdue charges for junior members.

It also follows moves made by libraries across the UK to remove barriers that discourage people from using their services. Along with children, retirement-aged people tend to be a big demographic for library use but people in that age group can also begin to develop issues that make accessing a library difficult, such as mobility problems or memory problems. Libraries collectively have realised that the removal of overdue charges for over 65s takes away some of the stress of having to return books for people who find it difficult to get into town, or who might have memory problems and forget what they have borrowed.

Staff at the Guille-Allès Library have taken this a step further by undertaking Dementia Friendly training, and Disability Awareness training provided by the Guernsey Disability Alliance. Customer Services Librarian Rachel Wyatt said: “We are always working on improving our service to reflect the needs of the community in Guernsey. We realise that not all people over 65 are experiencing health problems, but for those that are we wanted to make sure the library is a friendly and accessible place. Getting rid of fines for over 65s is a great way for us to encourage those people to use our service.”

Research from Help The Aged suggests that keeping up intellectual activity can actually help with physical health and in the report, “Learning For Living” Help the Aged states that “participation in learning new skills can help to alleviate illness… learning increases self-confidence, self-worth and general wellbeing”. This can include learning new hobbies from the Library’s vast collection of non-fiction books, the mental wellbeing that comes from enjoying a good novel, or even attending one of the Library’s IT drop-in sessions to increase your confidence with using the internet.