Books for Bullingdon ..

Sat 22 Feb, 12:37 (last edited on Sat 22 Feb, 12:38)

Patricia, which rooms are being filled with books, and becoming "unusable"?  They're no fuller than they've ever been, are they?  I wage a constant battle against people leaving books in surprising places (instead of in the Albright Room, or at present nowhere until after Easter), but otherwise the books should only ever be on their appointed shelves, or on the tables in the centre of the Morris Room -- and those are moved whenever the room is booked.  If anything's out of order ever, do let me know.

But yes, we already have a rotation system.  Each room has its own designated volunteer(s), who manage the books on a regular basis.  About half a tonne a month are passed on for recycling, or sale elsewhere.

[It may be worth mentioning that the Morris Room is a priority for refurbishment.  The windows are being restored this spring, new heaters are being installed, and later this year we plan to insulate the ceiling and redecorate the room.  We're already starting to get a few more bookings for it, and before long it will be a lovely space for meetings etc.]

Sat 22 Feb, 11:45

It might be a good idea to have a system in the Corner House books of marking the books as they come in.  Then books that have been on the shelves for more than 2/3 years moving on, either to the prison or elsewhere.  The rooms are being filled with books making the rooms unusable for other events.

Wed 19 Feb, 06:30 (last edited on Wed 19 Feb, 06:50)

Thank you, John.  This project is so worthwhile.  Some of the prisoners I met at Bullingdon last month have been there on remand for years awaiting trial and are working to improve their lives for when they are released.  One prisoner I met had his young son and grandparents visiting him for an event.  The prisoner had won an award for improving his literacy and 'counseling/listening' skills.  His grandmother told me it was the first certificate he had ever won.  This prisoner is now regularly called upon by guards to listen to other prisoners who are struggling and sometimes he stays with them for hours and hours.  Your work delivering books and helping re-connect with community makes a huge difference.  Thank you to all who can donate to John for this project.

Tue 18 Feb, 17:57 (last edited on Tue 18 Feb, 18:06)

.. the prison, not the club.  (Perhaps they should be twinned?)

[This picks up on an earlier thread on these boards.]

We've done our first run from the Corner House, and the prison librarian has written:  "The selection you provided was perfect for the prison, and I’m pleased to say that none were rejected by security or myself.  I really look forward to continuing this partnership, as it will make a significant difference to the prison library."

HMP Bullingdon is a remand prison for men, and as such has a very wide range of putative offenders, from white-collar fraudsters with sophisticated reading tastes to (a large number of) semi-literate inmates.  For the latter, graphic novels, young-adult men's fiction and shorter books are particularly welcome.  The most popular genre overall is real-life crime (the single most-borrowed book being a biography of the Kray twins), and the most-read books are stereotypically masculine -- thrillers, crime, sports (auto)biographies, war fact & fiction.  There's a heavily male bias (even female thriller-writers are rarely borrowed), but there is also apparently an encouraging subcurrent of self-improvement & more-thoughtful reading:  I took in an autobiography of Gandhi, and was told that they've had several copies before that proved very popular.  (They can tell the most popular books, because they're borrowed and never seen again!)

The prison library is staffed by Oxfordshire County Council, but its book-buying budget is now £0 - so our donations are very welcome.

This is a long-winded way of saying that (although we're not, for the next couple of months, taking books for the Corner House itself) I'd be glad to receive Bullingdon books - good-condition hard or soft cover.  Just let me know on 07555 608780 or john@pjohnp.me.uk.