Libraries will bloom to celebrate the Coronation
Cheshire West and Chester libraries will be celebrating the Coronation of Their Majesties King Charles III and The Queen Consort with some wildflower themed activities.
Some libraries will sow wildflower seeds, so they will bloom red, white and blue this summer, seed bookmarks will be given away and there will be themed children’s craft sessions.
The Coronation’s themes are “youth, community, diversity and sustainability” which led the Library Service, which is already involved in the Council’s plans to tackle the Climate Emergency, to think more about sustainability.
The outside space at five libraries – Barnton, Hope Farm, Lache, Sandiway and Tattenhall – will be wildflower seeded. Flowers will include the patriotic colours of red, white and blue. The wildflower areas are being created by the Council’s Your Streets team as they work their way around the borough creating this year’s native wildflower meadows.
This follows on from the wildflower seeding of Upton Library last year and it is hoped that more libraries will have wildflower areas in the future.
One thousand plantable seed paper bookmarks, specially printed with the Coronation logo, will be distributed by the borough’s libraries. After being used in books, watering them will allow the wildflower seed to germinate and grow. Simple instructions on how to do this will be given out with the bookmarks.
In addition, libraries will be doing children’s crafts and other activities in the weeks before the Coronation. Please ask at your local library for details, or see the library events webpage: Library events
Arts Council England have provided library services in England with £1,000 to mark the occasion in whatever way they think will be most relevant and enjoyable for their users and local community. In west Cheshire this funding has been used for the wildflower seed and bookmarks.
It’s free to join and use a library. In addition to printed books, there is free access to computers, wi-fi and study space. Membership allows access to the popular BorrowBox app which provides thousands of eBooks and eAudiobooks for free. As well as this, the Libby app provides free access to hundreds of magazines online.
The library events are part of the Council’s programme to celebrate the Coronation. For more details see: Coronation events in west Cheshire
