Services for families and young people

We work closely with schools to develop a relationship between children and hub libraries. To do this we hold a range of activities to promote reading, including:

Baby pack

Middlesbrough Libraries work in partnership with health visitors to distribute Bookstart Baby packs to all children in their first year.

Bag Books story sessions

Bag Books are multi-sensory story packs which offer accessible stories for those who cannot benefit from mainstream books. These can be borrowed by parents. Please contact Central Library on 01642 729002 for further information.

Bookstart

Bookstart gifts free books to all children at two key ages before they start school to help families read together every day and inspire children with a rewarding love of books.

Craft sessions

Weekly craft activities take place at Acklam Community Hub. Discover a different story each week and get involved with fun filled activities. Open to all children who can sit, listen and participate. Recommended age 5-12 years.

The craft sessions will be launching with a new day and times in September; please contact the branch directly on 01642 817810 for more information.

Summer Reading Challenge

The Summer Reading Challenge takes place across libraries every year with a different theme and name. Children aged 4-11 who sign up will have to read at least six books during the summer holidays. Children receive a folder and collect gifts along the way, and can also attend workshops throughout the holidays. On completion of the challenge, they receive a medal and certificate at the annual award ceremony.

Children who take part are more enthusiastic about reading and maintain their reading levels over the holidays.

Treasure pack

Every three year old child accessing a school nursery, PVI nursery (private, voluntary or independent - a nursery not linked to a school) or childminder will receive their treasure pack via Middlesbrough Libraries.

Time to Read

Time to Read (formerly Booktime) promotes reading for pleasure with the gift of a book pack, including a guidance booklet for parents and carers on shared reading.

The book pack is gifted to reception-aged children, usually through a class visit to the library, as part of a scheme funded by Pearson Publishing and Booktrust.

Contact

If you have any questions or comments about any of our services that we provide to families and young people, please contact Central Library (01642 729002) or one of the Community Hubs.

Class visits

We welcome class visits and schools are invited to contact their local branch to book a session. We offer introductory library skills sessions and themed story times. We also offer a programme of curriculum linked class visits which allow further investigation into a given subject, such as ancient Greeks, people who help us, Chinese New Year and pirates. These sessions are aimed at children in KS1 and KS2.