The Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity has entered a partnership with Edinburgh City Libraries in order to deliver books to the homes of vulnerable families with children across the Scottish capital. The project is meant to help kids get through the country’s coronavirus lockdown and will run for the next 12 weeks.
The Edinburgh Book Bus
Deliveries are made through the use of Edinburgh’s very own Book Bus, made available by the Edinburgh City Libraries and Information Services. It has now been filled with over 1800 books meant for children and young people across the urban area.
The bus itself will remain at the Hospital Charity’s office, where volunteer drivers will be able to collect book packages that are meant to be delivered to kids and youngsters that are already known to the Hospital. The Charity wants to reassure all citizens that it is taking any and all necessary precautions and is stringently following government guidelines – personnel adheres to social distancing and hygienic guidelines, while the books that are returned are disinfected and held on board for 72 hours before become available for delivery again.
Speaking about the project, City of Edinburgh Council Leader Adam McVey stated that “We’re delighted we can help families known to the Sick Kids and thanks to our library team who have been superb. One of our mobile libraries is filled with about 1,800 children’s books so what better way of putting these books to good use.
Books are a wonderful resource and will really help families having to self-isolate in their homes for 12 weeks. Reading as a family is a joy and can help to improve wellbeing – a recent study found that six minutes of reading can reduce stress levels by 60%. This is a great example showing how working together with partners in the city can respond to the needs of our communities.”
