Forget Uber Eats - Napier Library now delivers

Community engagement librarian Kat Emsley gets ready to deliver.

Forget Meals on Wheels or Uber Eats, how about a bag of books delivered to your front door?

In addition to the Home Services scheme which the Napier library has been operating for a number of years, a home delivery service was started just over a month ago for people who were no longer able to access the library during Covid, says Napier Library community engagement lead Rachel Hadfield.

"When we were advised to require vaccine passes, we thought that might leave a few people at a loose end.

"Some different groups couldn't make it in or were isolating at home."

Rachel says as Covid cases ramped up, they needed a fairly quick solution to remove the barriers for those wanting to access their services.

"It's about getting the content to the people."

There are two options for people wanting library books delivered to their homes — reserving books using the online system, or ordering a grab bag by choosing their preferences around audience, format or genre. There is also the option of a mixture of reserved or grab a bag.

"They fill out a form on our website and can make their choices for the grab bag. People can call and put their order in if they have no access to a computer."

Librarians make up the orders and deliver on the chosen day. They email to confirm the day of delivery and phone on the day they have selected.

Community engagement librarians Kat Emsley and Keelie Nye are the main players in the delivery service, with wider members of the team stepping in to take calls and deliver, Rachel says.

"We make sure the process is contactless and plan to continue this service in some form. We are trying to be really responsive and have a flexible service, which we have tried to adapt. We can also pick up and return people's items."

Although there hasn't been huge numbers taking up the service so far, Rachel says they are delivering five days a week for now.

"We've had a lot of positive feedback, especially from families isolating. It's been cool to see it. You don't want to be stuck at home with sick kids and no books. It's been a way of staying connected with our community. The library is still here, even if you can't pop in."

■ To access the home delivery service visit www.napierlibrary.co.nz and fill out the home delivery form.