Mrs H Southall BA Hons MCLIP Librarian New Library Books
Have You Read?
Prize-winning Books About the Library
The Library is a well-equipped and attractive resource centre for the whole school. The Fiction and Ryland Libraries support the ever-changing needs of the curriculum and encourage reading for pleasure by giving access to a wide range of carefully targeted resources in a variety of media. Colston’s Girls’ School has had a purpose-built library since 1912, the current Ryland Library was built in 1957 to replace the original which was irretrievably damaged by bombs during the Second World War. At present the Library is spread over three rooms at the top of the main building: the Fiction Library, the Ryland Library and a Sixth Form Study Room. In 2011 The Library will be moving to a dynamic new open plan space on the ground floor. |  The Ryland Library | Resources The Library Catalogue, listing all of the library’s resources, is available on all school computers and will soon be available online.
Approximately 5000 non-fiction titles covering all subjects across the curriculum and beyond are housed in the Ryland Library. The Fiction Library stocks approximately 2500 fiction titles ranging from Jane Austen to Benjamin Zephaniah and everything in between. There are also audiobooks on CD. A wide range of poetry anthologies can be found in the Fiction Library. There are films on DVD including many foreign language films for A level linguists. Pupils may borrow from a large collection of music on CD supporting the music curriculum. All Library computers (PCs and laptops) are linked into the school network. See details of the school’s Computer Policy here. A photocopier is available for pupils to use. A Quick Reference Collection includes encyclopaedias, dictionaries and atlases as well as subject specific reference works. One weekly and two daily newspapers are stocked and we subscribe to an online searchable database of all UK newspapers.
 Kirsty Young talked about the power of books at Prize Day Online resources
The Library subscribes to these resources and others to give pupils and staff access to some reliable internet-based sources of information: http://www.uk.worldbookonline.com/ is an authoritative encyclopaedia written by experts, an invaluable source of written information, pictures, maps, tables, video clips etc. You may access this via the internet at home or school. Ask the librarian for our password. www.independence.co.uk gives reliable information on contemporary social issues such as global warming with key facts, statistics and much more. You may access this via the internet at home or school. Ask the librarian for our password. www.newsuk.co.uk an online searchable database of all UK newspapers. Ask the Librarian for the school's username and password.  Meg Cabot Visit
Author Visits
Our author visits are always very popular and we have been delighted to welcome to the school Meg Cabot, author of the Princess Diaries phenomenon, Cathy Cassidy who wrote Dizzy, Indigo Blue, Gingersnap and many others, Jean Ure, prolific author of books such as Gone Missing and Shrinking Violet, Julia Golding writer of several successful series including Cat Royal and The Companions Quartet, and Cornelia Funke author of the exciting Inkheart series. We have also taken small, enthusiastic groups to the Bath Festival of Children’s Literature to see talks by Malorie Blackman, Anthony Horowitz, Meg Rosoff and Marcus Sedgwick.
 Cornelia Funke signing copies of Inkspell Some Interesting Websites  Big Book Sale on World Book Day |
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