Festival of Libraries 2024: Celebrating libraries and creativity across Greater Manchester
12-16 June saw the return of , taking place across the whole of Greater Manchester to celebrate the vital role that libraries play in wellbeing, culture and creativity.
Çà¹ÏÊÓƵ“ the UniversityÇà¹ÏÊÓƵ™s creativity-championing research platform Çà¹ÏÊÓƵ“ hosted five workshop sessions in partnership with the , , and .
Çà¹ÏÊÓƵ˜Writing for WellbeingÇà¹ÏÊÓƵ™ took place at Tameside, Rochdale and Bury Libraries on 13 - 15 June. Facilitators Rebecca Hurst, Tessa Harris and John McAuliffe worked with participants to explore the benefits of creative writing on personal wellbeing.
One attendee commented:
To learn at 67 years I don't need to wait but can just access past memories and unconnected stimuli to write a poem is amazing.
Çà¹ÏÊÓƵ˜Tasting ChildrenÇà¹ÏÊÓƵ™s Literature Çà¹ÏÊÓƵ“ An Edible ReadathonÇà¹ÏÊÓƵ™ returned on Friday, 14 June with two sessions: a private workshop for Reception children at St. AndrewÇà¹ÏÊÓƵ™s C of E Primary School Levenshulme, held at Arcadia Library, and a public session at Manchester Central Library. Children enjoyed a storytime session with play food, colouring activities, and fruits to eat.
The Linguistic Diversity Collective held two well-attended workshops at The Portico Library on 12 and 14 June. The first, Çà¹ÏÊÓƵ˜WhatÇà¹ÏÊÓƵ™s in a word and whatÇà¹ÏÊÓƵ™s in a dictionary?Çà¹ÏÊÓƵ™ saw attendees take part in activities looking at how dictionaries define words and phrases.
Çà¹ÏÊÓƵ˜Blackout the jargonÇà¹ÏÊÓƵ™ then invited participants to engage with scientific literature in a unique way through blackout poetry.
Supported by , the Festival of Libraries 2024 was a testament to ManchesterÇà¹ÏÊÓƵ™s enduring commitment to literacy, learning, and inclusivity.
Find out more about the Festival of Libraries .