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Green Libraries Week: 27th October to 2nd November
This national celebration highlights how libraries across the UK support climate action, sustainability, and community wellbeing. Every borrowed book, every shared space, and every digital read makes a difference.
Borrowing a Book Helps the Environment When you borrow a book instead of buying a new one, you help reduce the demand for paper, ink, transport, and packaging — all of which have a carbon cost.
Each borrowed book saves an estimated 0.7 kg of COâ‚‚ emissions*. Between April 2024 and April 2025, Southend Libraries customers prevented over 320 tonnes of COâ‚‚ from entering the atmosphere — simply by borrowing instead of buying!
Easy Ways to Go Greener with Southend Libraries:
Use the space
Libraries are warm, welcoming, and energy-efficient public spaces. Working, studying, or reading here instead of at home helps cut down your personal electricity and heating use.
Borrow, don’t buy
From books and audiobooks to tools and kitchen gadgets, borrowing keeps resources in circulation and reduces waste.
Access digital books and audio books or sustainable reading:
No printing, no shipping, no paper waste! Explore our library at BorrowBox.
Read your news online
Save paper by switching to PressReader, where you can access thousands of newspapers and magazines for free with your library card.
Help create a greener, more sustainable future, one library visit at a time.
*‘Bringing Environmental Awareness of Public Libraries to the 2020s, Finnish Public Libraries Network’ Bringing environmental awareness of public libraries to the 2020s project’s materials now in English | Libraries.fi
Dare to read some spooky local legends...
Or read about them here!
New Children's Library Services
Discover Southend on Sea and surrounding areas throughout history with our newly added images from the Southend Picture Archive
Discover Southend On Sea's Past History with our newly added images from the Southend Picture Archive together with book collections and interactive maps
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Discover Find My Past
Find My Past is the latest addition to our FREE digital resources collection.
Access is now available in-library via The People's Network computers, where you can view the 1921 Census; the largest collection of UK Parish registers; the British Newspaper Archive and much more!
Please do not hesitate to ask staff for any assistance you may require.
Discover Southend on Sea
Video tutorials from Niche Academy to assist with accessing our Online Resources
Discover video tutorials from Niche Academy to help you improve your digital and research skills or get started with social media and internet basics.
Reading Well Collections
Education and Further Learning
Visit Our Education And Further Learning Page Containing Helpful Links For Home Schooling And Further Education
Employment, Training and creating a CV
Discover Helpful Links To Websites For Help Finding Employment, Training And Creating CVS
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