{"id":6921,"date":"2025-06-13T16:30:35","date_gmt":"2025-06-13T16:30:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/?p=6921"},"modified":"2025-06-11T11:55:52","modified_gmt":"2025-06-11T11:55:52","slug":"building-for-tomorrow-kildare-libraries-set-bold-course-for-the-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/building-for-tomorrow-kildare-libraries-set-bold-course-for-the-future\/","title":{"rendered":"Building for Tomorrow: Kildare Libraries Set Bold Course for the Future"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\"><em>Naas, Friday 13th June 2025 <\/em><\/p>\n<p data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\"><strong>Kildare County Co<\/strong><strong>uncil<\/strong> has officially launched its brand-new five-year development plan for libraries, <strong>Building for Tomorrow &#8211; Kildare Library Service Plan 2025-2029<\/strong>. The plan was unveiled at Naas Library &amp; Cultural Centre by Cathaoirleach Councillor Kevin Duffy and County Librarian Gillian Allen.<\/p>\n<p data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\"><span data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">This ambitious roadmap lays out a fresh and dynamic vision for the future of public libraries across Kildare, aiming to make them more inclusive, innovative, and sustainable than ever before.<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\"><strong>What\u2019s in the Plan?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">Developed through extensive public consultation and inspired by national strategies like The Library is the Place (2023), the plan responds to the needs of Kildare\u2019s growing and diverse population. Over the next five years, the focus will be on seven key areas:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Enlivening Content &#8211; expanding reading initiatives and building inclusive, responsive collections<\/li>\n<li>Reaching Out &#8211; engaging with new communities and giving young people a stronger voice<\/li>\n<li>Stories and Placemaking &#8211; celebrating local culture and heritage in meaningful ways<\/li>\n<li>Real Place \/ Digital World &#8211; enhancing online library services while creating greener, more welcoming spaces<\/li>\n<li>Enabling the Team &#8211; supporting staff through professional development and leadership opportunities<\/li>\n<li>Capital Developments &#8211; including new library buildings for Clane and Newbridge<\/li>\n<li>Sustaining Our Planet &#8211; embedding climate-conscious design and sustainable practices in all we do<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Why It Matters?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">Speaking ahead of the launch,\u00a0<b>Cathaoirleach Councillor Kevin Duffy<\/b>\u00a0said:<\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201cKildare public libraries are not just places to borrow books; they are vibrant community hubs that foster learning, creativity, and connection.\u00a0<i>Building for Tomorrow<\/i>\u00a0is an ambitious, forward-looking strategy that seeks to improve access, visibility, and the quality of public libraries as essential community services.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><b data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">County Librarian Gillian Allen<\/b>\u00a0highlighted the community-driven nature of the plan:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThrough design thinking and deep consultation, we\u2019ve listened to our communities\u2014especially those we haven\u2019t reached before. This plan is about making our libraries places where everyone feels welcome, valued, and inspired. From new buildings to digital innovation and sustainability, we are building a brighter future for Kildare.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Kildare County Council has launched Building for Tomorrow &#8211; Kildare Library Service Plan 2025-2029, a bold five year strategy to transform public libraries into inclusive, innovative and sustainable community hubs. From new libraries in Clane and Newbridge to expanded digital services and climate conscious design, the plan outlines a fresh vision that puts people and place at the heart of everything Kildare Libraries do. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":182174489,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1324137,22189,141630],"tags":[771541822,771541830,771541825,771541835,771541828,771494745,771541832,771541833,771541826,10603169,702194613,260122597,771541829,771541823,47544,771541827,771541836,771541834,24552546,771541831,771541824,6877],"class_list":["post-6921","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-council-services","category-general-information","category-library-services","tag-building-for-tomorrow","tag-clane-library","tag-community-hubs","tag-culture-and-heritage","tag-digital-services","tag-digital-services-libraries","tag-inclusive-services","tag-inclusivity","tag-irish-libraries","tag-kildare-county-council","tag-kildare-libraries","tag-libraries-ireland","tag-library-capital-projects","tag-library-development-plan","tag-library-events","tag-library-innovation","tag-library-news","tag-library-outreach","tag-library-strategy","tag-newbridge-library","tag-public-libraries","tag-sustainability"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6921","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/182174489"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6921"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6921\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6929,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6921\/revisions\/6929"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6921"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6921"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6921"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}