Warwickshire Libraries has published figures to show the impact it had during 2024-2025, the service’s second year as a highly prestigious National Portfolio Organisation (NPO), funded by Arts C...
Warwickshire Libraries has published figures to show the impact it had during 2024-2025, the service’s second year as a highly prestigious National Portfolio Organisation (NPO), funded by Arts Council England (ACE) to deliver cultural programming for and with communities across the county.
The service will have NPO status for four years and is receiving ACE funding to deliver a variety of cultural and creative activities, with a focus on Nuneaton, Bedworth and North Warwickshire as priority areas for the Creating Opportunities programme of work.
Warwickshire Libraries’ remit is to create new and exciting opportunities; co-create inclusive and accessible work that is representative of the county’s diverse communities; champion hidden voices and celebrate the diversity and heritage of the county; empower communities; develop the creative and practical skills of staff; promote libraries as places to access literature, art, culture and heritage within their communities and to support priority groups.
In its second year, Warwickshire Libraries’ NPO programme delivered the following results:
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358 days of activity
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Worked with 118 partners and creative practitioners
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8510 participants at events
Figures from Warwickshire Libraries’ Impact Story showed that 73% of NPO event participants had improved their attitude towards libraries, and that the activity or event which they attended led to an increase in happiness. 23% of those that took part in the evaluation confirmed they were new to Warwickshire Libraries, with the NPO programme resulting in an 11% increase in library visits across Warwickshire. New events and activities for all ages, including Sip and Paint evenings, murder mystery nights and the new annual Book Bingo campaign, amongst other work, have contributed to this rise in library engagement.
Events delivered included the Hidden Stories programme, which championed communities such as military spouses and young care leavers; Fun Palaces, the annual free family festival Park Life Reads; the Big Green Tour, which brought exciting workshops and crafts to the north of the county; and the First Folio Facsimile Tour celebrating Warwickshire’s responses to the works of William Shakespeare.
A collaborative project with Romani artist Gemma Lees, which involved 261 participants of all ages, created inclusive spaces for cultural exchange and learning between different communities. The project saw an 80% increase in awareness of local Gypsy Roma and Traveller communities and their heritages, with 70% of participants confirming that they had discovered the library services for the first time through participating in the project.
The upcoming year of NPO activity will see the development of a brand new Librarium podcast, hosted and produced by Warwickshire Libraries staff, free chair and parent and baby yoga courses, a series of Taste and Create workshops, as well as the launch of Book Bingo 2026.
ACE, in its review of Warwickshire Libraries’ output as an NPO, stated that the service had achieved “an outstanding performance … an exceptional and brilliant year … best practice in the arts and cultural sector … [and] successful testing of new methods and approaches”.
Councillor Mike Bannister, Portfolio Holder for Customer and Localities, said: “It has been great to see the impact of the NPO work by Warwickshire Libraries over the course of the year. We have been reviewing the engagement levels of the public with Warwickshire Libraries in our priority areas such as Nuneaton and Bedworth and North Warwickshire and the NPO programme of events and activities is making great improvements. I look forward to this continuing and for our libraries to continue creating new opportunities for learning and celebrating culture and wellbeing in the areas that need our support the most.”
The Impact Story can be viewed in full here