The Vaisey Trust (also know as the David Vaisey Trust) is a small charity that makes annual monetary awards to libraries in Gloucestershire – both public libraries and State school libraries. The importance of libraries in helping more people read more books is widely recognised, with the lack of libraries and librarians in primary schools being a particular concern. We see this as a social justice issue and know that, since 2016, we have been able to support initiatives that bring people and books together. The money we provide through our awards, presented each year at the Cheltenham Festival of Literature, celebrates the creativity and energy of librarians, who understand the needs of their communities. We are raising funds to support our growth into the school sector and thus increase our impact.

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‘Thanks to the David Vaisey Award, we successfully combined creativity and literacy to bring families together, foster a love for learning, and expand the reach of library services into underrepresented and isolated areas. Planning for next year’s festival is already underway, promising even greater impact.‘

Holly Lovelock, on behalf of last year’s public library award winners. A group of libraries received £5,000 towards the cost of running Family Festivals across Gloucestershire.

‘Thank you so much for your recognition of the importance of this and the opportunities winning this award has given us: even after several months and a lot of work we are still so excited and passionate about the project‘.

Maggie Jones, Dene Magna School, after winning the maximum award of £5,000