Focus Group
Can you help Somerset Libraries by being part of a focus group?
Or perhaps you have friends, family or neighbours that might be interested? The sessions will run for 30 mins on ZOOM on Thursday 2nd July and also on other dates to be confirmed- see details below…
Just email John Carter jdcarter@somerset.gov.uk to be sent a link to ZOOM the day before
The details
Somerset Libraries would like to invite people to help shape the library service of today and the future, by evaluating of their diverse range of services (both physical and online). Feedback from frequent, occasional and non-users will be sought through informal focus groups and/or one-to-one conversations.
Each focus group or conversation should last around 30 minutes and participants will be asked about:-
• Their awareness of library services – including the online services we have been developing
• How easy/difficult they find it to access what they need
• Keep the learning sessions in short bursts
• How their needs regarding accessing literature, digital services, events and activities might be changing
• Any advice and suggestions to help us improve our range of services
The key groups we are seeking views from are:-
Parents of young children – via a virtual Zoom meeting on Wednesday 8th July at 1:30PM
People over 70 yrs of age – via a virtual Zoom meeting on Thursday 16th July at 2:00PM
Other (anyone else!) – via a virtual Zoom meeting on Thursday 2nd July at 5.00PM
We will ensure all participants feel safe and all views will be welcomed and valued – discussions will be guided by friendly library professionals and participants can remain anonymous if they wish (and they don’t have to turn on their camera!)
As mentioned above, the initial sessions will run via the Zoom app (we will end out a link via email to a private meeting the day before the session)– but we will also run some sessions as a teleconference (for those people who would prefer this sort of communication)
Participants will be asked a few questions after a short explanation of what the library service has been developing in the last three months, whilst library buildings have been closed and we will talk through some of the services which some people may be less aware of. This can be summarised as follows:-
In the last three months we have increased investment in the free online resources that library members can access, including:-
e-Books Thousands of titles to choose from, available to loan for free for 21 days
e-Audiobooks Llisten to your favourite authors, available to loan for free for 14 days
e-Magazines Choose from hundreds of top magazine titles, download for free and keep for as long as you like
e-Newspapers Access the full text of 1000+ daily, weekly and monthly newspapers from over 100 countries
e-Comics and Graphic Novels Choose from over 1500 titles across a range of genres for both adults and children
Staff have also been developing content on their social media pages Facebook / Twitter / Instagram such as videos, activities and quizzes and links to useful resources
In addition, we have been promoting the Home Library Service and the Mobile Library Service – which may be of particular intertest to people that are ‘shielding’ and/or need to stay at home because they are caring for someone else.