Nottingham City Libraries has been awarded £12,000 through the LibraryOn grants programme to improve its website and introduce the Library Companion app in libraries. These upgrades will make it easier for customers to browse the catalogue, reserve books, and manage their accounts. Nottingham is one of just 15 public library projects across England to receive this funding from LibraryOn grants programme.
Supported by Arts Council England and facilitated by the British Library, LibraryOn helps library services strengthen their digital presence and offer new ways for people to engage. Launched in November 2025, the programme invited library authorities to apply for grants between £10,000 and £30,000 for digital improvements.
The Nottingham project will enhance accessibility and discoverability online, adding features like adjustable fonts, high-contrast mode, and automated event listings integrated with LibraryOn’s national Events Listing. Social sharing tools will make it easier for people to spread the word about what’s happening.
Touchscreen devices running the Library Companion app in every library will allow visitors to join, browse the library catalogue, and check events independently.
Corall Jenkins Executive Member for Neighbourhoods, Waste and Equalities
“Thanks to LibraryOn, we can make it easier for people to find out what’s happening in their local library, share events with friends, and get involved in community activities. These improvements will help more residents discover everything our libraries have to offer.”
LibraryOn grants support a wide range of innovative projects, from virtual tours and AI-powered reading initiatives to improved joining processes and digital reading challenges. All aim to use technology creatively to improve the library experience and attract new audiences.
Liz White, Director of Library Partnerships at the British Library, said: ‘We’re thrilled to have awarded this year’s LibraryOn grants to library services across England. These grants will help support libraries in balancing investment in core offers with a wide variety of opportunities for digital innovation, user research and for sharing learning and insights across the Library sector. This reflects the British Library’s commitment to helping increase the number of people using public libraries and raise awareness about their enduring value and importance.’
Luke Burton, Director Libraries at Arts Council England, said: ‘We’re proud to continue to support the British Library in its delivery and development of LibraryOn. It is a transformational approach giving greater visibility and reach to library services across England. It is inspiring to hear about another range of innovative projects being funded by LibraryOn and I look forward to seeing them come to life and they might be replicated across other libraries.’
LibraryOn is a not-for-profit initiative aiming to increase the number of people who use libraries, both in person and online. The LibraryOn website will continue to provide a ‘shop window’ for public libraries at the national level, while the grants programme funds digital work and improvement at the local level.
Notes to editors
Nottingham City Libraries:
Media Contact Karen Lushey, Senior Library Officer
Email: karen.lushey@nottinghamcity.gov.uk
Website: www.nottinghamcitylibraries.co.uk
For media enquiries relating to LibraryOn, please contact press@bl.uk.
About LibraryOn
LibraryOn is a publicly-funded, not-for-profit programme that promotes the work of public libraries. It aims to increase visits to public libraries by making their offers and services easier to discover and use. Funded by Arts Council England and the British Library, and with libraries and library ethics at its heart, LibraryOn currently does this in two core ways; through the LibraryOn website, that shares content from library staff, customers and volunteers and communicates the range of services, community activities and content libraries offer; and the LibraryOn grants programme.
The LibraryOn programme also complements the wider government strategy for libraries, and contributes to the delivery of ‘Knowledge Matters’, the British Library’s 10-year strategy.
About the British Library
We are the national library of the UK and we are here for everyone. Our shelves hold over 170 million items – a living collection that gets bigger every day. Although our roots extend back centuries, we aim to collect everything published in the UK today, tomorrow and far into the future. Our trusted experts care for this collection and open it up for everyone to spark new discoveries, ideas and to help people do incredible things.
We have millions of books, and much more besides. Our London and Yorkshire sites hold collections ranging from newspapers and maps to sound recordings, patents, academic journals, as well as a copy of every UK domain website and blog. Our public spaces provide a place to research, to meet friends, to start up a new business or simply to get inspired by visiting our galleries and events. We work with partners and libraries across the UK and the world to make sure that as many people as possible have the chance to use and explore our collections, events and expertise. And we’re always open online, along with more and more of our digitised collection.
See: www.bl.uk
About Arts Council England
Arts Council England is the national development agency for creativity and culture. Our vision, set out in our strategy Let’s Create, is that by 2030, we want England to be a country in which the creativity of each of us is valued and given the chance to flourish, and where every one of us has access to a remarkable range of high-quality cultural experiences. Between 2023 and 2026 we will have invested over £467 million of public money from Government, alongside an estimated £250 million each year from The National Lottery, to help ensure that people in every part of the country have access to culture and creativity in the places where they live. Until Autumn 2025, the National Lottery is celebrating its 30th anniversary of supporting good causes in the United Kingdom: since the first draw was held in 1994, it has raised £49 billion and awarded more than 690,000 individual grants.
Visit our website to learn more about our work.