A NEW library designed to make children fall in love with reading was opened at a Coventry primary school on World Book Day.
Pupils at Corpus Christi Catholic Primary School – part of the Romero Catholic Academy – were dressed as their favourite characters from the world of literature as the new library was officially opened.
A ribbon in the entrance to the library was cut by assistant vice-principal Zoe Pollard, who led the project to transform the school’s old library into a vibrant space for reading and learning.
And the ribbon-cutting was broadcast live into the school hall during a special assembly so all the pupils could see the new library.
The library had been kept covered and none of the pupils knew what it was going to look like.
They were very excited to see the finished library.
The launch was supported by Coventry City Council’s Library Service, which provided drones to get aerial footage from inside the library on the day, and also promoted Coventry’s libraries service during the assembly.
Charlotte Miller, vice principal at Corpus Christi, said it was essential the pupils had a library they were genuinely excited to use.
She said: “Children have so many distractions these days – reading can often take a back seat in their lives.
“But reading is a life skill and we wanted to promote reading as much as we could. This new library is about getting children to love reading and embrace it.
“Zoe was the driving force behind the library’s transformation, and she’s done a fantastic job. We’re so proud of the new space and design.
“The children were so excited to see their brand new library. It was lovely to see the looks on their faces as they saw it for the first time. We hope they all enjoy using it for years to come.”
Zoe had the idea to transform the library into a space the pupils would really enjoy around three months ago.
Characters on the walls included Hagrid from Harry Potter, Dr Seuss’s The Cat in the Hat, and Alice and the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland.
Although bright new furniture was bought for the library, much of the work was done by staff themselves to save money.
Coventry City Council’s Library Services collected and repurposed the school’s old books to make way for new ones bought by the school’s PTFA (parents teachers and friends association).
The association had raised £2,000 for the new books, which was then matched by the school itself.
