Quality books for the people of Piha, Karekare & Anawhata

Piha Community Library Trust

Providing a Library Service for the people of Piha, Karekare & Anawhata

A Brief History of Piha Library and How it was Founded and Developed

In the 1950s, Dulcie Ussher of the Country Women's Institute, approached the Country Library Service in Hamilton to see if they would consider providing a library service to Piha under the auspices of the CWI. They acceded to this request and arrangements were made to have some boxes of books on a 2-monthly basis. This service was initially operated for 15 years by Dulcie and Tene Erdman in various places, including the old schoolhouse. Dulcie was joined by other members of the CWI. The library was housed for many years in the old school house by the fire station. Over time a book exchange of paperbacks also operated with the Country Library books.

Later, first Jean Otto and then Joan Crossland took over the running of this small library service, and when Joan pulled out, Glenda Northey, a qualified librarian, was asked to take over. However, as she was going to an overseas posting for 3 years, Mary Dobbie stepped into the job until such time as Glenda returned to Piha.

In the early 80s the Country Library Service no longer supplied books and Glenda arranged for a small bulk loan of books to be delivered to Piha every 3-4 months from the Henderson Library (10 children's books and 40 adult books). The library was open to adults on Tuesday and Saturday and children on Saturday only. In 1983 Glenda approached the Glen Eden Library to see if they could supply a top-up of books, as the small loan from Henderson was not enough to keep the keen readers in the community going. This new supply was gratefully accepted by the community.

Old Piha Library Building in Piha

Ultimately the library was housed in one half of the old ARC unused implement shed, previously a bus shelter belonging to the Council. This was shared with the Post Office. When the Post Office moved out into its own premises, the library

Old Telephone Exchange Piha

expanded into the whole shed and also took over the little room at one end of the shed which was originally used as a meeting room. Monty Mead did the necessary alterations to the building and put a doorway through to the meeting room, and this became the children's area.

Piha Library Glenda Northey By the time that Glenda Northey (left) took over as librarian, the building was fairly closely packed with books, but many were old paperbacks and donated books in poor condition. Glenda culled the collection (it took 7 carloads to get rid of the unwanted material!) She then went around the various Councils in the area (it was before amalgamation) and asked for donations of books - the Auckland City Council in particular donated many children's books.

Glenda arranged for a continued 3 monthly loan from the Glen Eden Library, and this system continued for a number of years. On amalgamation of the local councils, Waitakere City Council's Glen Eden library continued to provide this service, largely through the good services of Adrian Bierbeck, who was the chief librarian at the time.

With the help of Adrian, Glenda successfully petitioned the Council to provide an annual grant to Piha Library for the purchase of books as the Country Library Service no longer came to the area and Piha, Karekare and Anawhata residents had no real local library service. A small budget was supplied by the Waitakere City Council and Glenda did the purchasing of new stock from this grant and accounts were sent to WCC for payment. All other expenses for the library were met by the fundraising efforts of the library committee.

As the library and its patronage grew and became more professional under Glenda's management, it was felt that a bigger and better building was needed. Adrian Bierbeck obtained Council funding for a feasibility study to look into the degree of support for the library service and for raising funds to build a new library. This study was carried out by Peter Joyce. The study provided evidence of strong community support, so the little group of volunteer librarians began the daunting task of raising money for a new building, based on sketch plans drawn up by Peter for a lovely new library to be placed on the Domain.

Over the next few years, Glenda and her group raised a great deal of money towards the building. There were fairs, fun runs, balls, and dinners, all locally organized by the committee and well attended and supported by residents.

At this time when they were considering upgrading the library, there was a first alert team operating in Piha and there was considerable discussion about the need for a health clinic in Piha. It was thought that the two services could be combined in one building, and fundraising continued on this basis, all the money being put into a special Library and Community Health bank account specially set up for the purpose. At this time it was decided that a trust should be formed to operate the library and also, if health services were included, undertake the management and ownership of the whole complex. The health services group's contribution to the funding of the centre was to be by way of a Government grant which the government at that time was offering for local health service clinics, and the health group applied to the Minister of Health (Jenny Shipley) for one of the grants for this purpose to be given to Piha. Ultimately, following an indication from Jenny Shipley that the fund was exhausted and no help would be forthcoming, the group decided that they would put the clinic idea aside as they did not have the time or energy to undertake the fundraising needed, and the group left the library committee to proceed alone. The formation of a trust, or alternatively an incorporated society was put on hold while the small library group put their energies into fundraising the total amount needed for a new building.

Prior to this, with $25,000 in the kitty, and much more money still needed, Glenda was looking to donations from various trusts, and because many would only donate to properly incorporated societies or trusts, she approached the Residents and Ratepayers Association to ask if we could make applications for funding using their name as an 'umbrella' group to give the library the necessary standing for grants and ultimately for the lease of the small portion of Domain land from the Council. This was agreed to and the library finances were then added as a separate section to the R & R accounts for auditing purposes. In return for this assistance, Glenda made fairly regular reports to the R & R committee on progress.

At no time did the library hand over 'ownership' of the library, its funds or the library management to the R & R Association, nor did the R & R Association ever take any responsibility in any way for the running or financing of library management or operations. This 'borrowing' of the R & R's incorporation as a stop gap arrangement was understood and honoured by the then R & R Association personnel.

Presently this mutual agreement seems to have been forgotten or overlooked by the R & R Association and any misapprehension of the situation needs to be corrected.

In 1997 Yvonne Dufaur took over the management of the library and continued, with the help of the group of librarians, to raise funds for the new building. Applications were made to the ASB and the Waitakere Licensing Trust, both of which gave major grants towards the new building and these were received by the R & R as the incorporated body and passed on to the library committee for lodgment in the library's building fund account. Further successful community fundraising events, organized by the small library committee, eventually gave the library group sufficient funds to commence the new building. The contract for the new library was subsequently let and administered by the library committee.

The new library, still without its planned plumbing facilities, was finally opened with considerable fanfare in May 1999 by Mayor Bob Harvey, and has continued to provide a much appreciated service to the growing permanent residents and to the holiday home owners in the Piha, KareKare and Anawhata areas.

Continued fundraising and further grants enabled the library committee to finish off the building and install plumbing and the septic tank system. One of the very successful fundraising events to get the plumbing completed, was the 'Dunny Do' at which the well known author Fay Weldon joined with Max Cryer to provide an evening's entertainment for an appreciative audience. The library's toilet now has a plaque on the door labeling it as 'The Fay Weldon Room' and Fay herself, on a return visit, officially opened the room at a small ceremony.

In 2007, with a valuable asset in the building and its contents, thriving membership and expanded services, the library felt that it was time that the future of the library was safeguarded with setting up a proper structure of its own, as originally planned, instead of the very informal management system that has been in place up until this time. To this end, the library committee gave consideration to the most suitable structure and management system and elected to set up a charitable trust to ensure the best possible outcomes for the library in the future and to ensure that the future expansion of services can be properly planned and managed.

This decision was conveyed to the R & R Association at its meeting in August 2007 and it was agreed that the Library Committee and the R & R President should clarify the procedures needed to transfer the lease, in the name of the the R & R, over to the new Trust once it was formed. A number of factors caused a delay in this process, but the library has now been registered as The Piha Community Library Trust under the Charitable Trusts Act 1957.

The Waitakere City council has agreed to safeguard the immediate future of the Piha Library with a formal Memorandum of Understanding between the council and the Trust and has also agreed that the Trust can use a portion of the Council grant to fund a part-time administration assistant for the l ibrary. The completion of this process to formalize the appropriate guardianship of this valuable asset which belongs to and serves the Piha, Karekare and Anawhata communities will be the transfer of the lease with the Waitakere City Council to the Trust, and the appointment of the new trustees to take over from the founding trust members.

The Piha Community Library Trust will then be properly set up to act as 'kaitiake' (guardians) of the library and its services and assets into the future.