Love for Libraries as Simon's Town Team Wins Caring Award!

Photo Credit: Simon’s Town Library

A loving library team in Simon’s Town has been recognised for an outstanding achievement in service… for caring!

Simon’s Town, South Africa (09 November 2026) – We love seeing South Africa’s librarians honoured.

On 29 October, at the City of Cape Town’s Library and Information Services Awards, the team at Simon’s Town Library was recognised for one outstanding quality – its care.

The awards honour staff, teams and librarians, celebrating their dedication, performance, innovation and community impact within library and information services.

Celebrating the achievement in receiving the Caring Team Award, the library took to social media last week to share the good news with readers.

“This wonderful achievement reflects the care, kindness and dedication we strive to show our community every day,” it wrote.

“A heartfelt thank you to our dedicated library staff, the Friends of Simon’s Town Library, and everyone who continues to support us in making a positive difference in our community. This award is a proud moment for us all and inspires us to continue serving our community with compassion, kindness and care.”

The digital world has changed how we receive and consume information, but South Africa’s libraries have evolved to keep up with the times. Finding information can be as easy as typing a question into our phones. The harder part is knowing what we can trust. The internet is an incredible tool, but it is also full of noise. Librarians have become the keepers of trusted information.

And…they still encourage people to read books. Actual books. Real ones with pages. The magic of curling up with a page-turner should never be lost. South Africa’s librarians continue to foster that love of reading in communities across the country.

Simon’s Town Library’s care for its community shines through in its engagement with the community. Staff go above and beyond to host educational programmes for children, workshops on labour matters and writing for adults, as well as wellness and awareness programmes and art exhibitions that spotlight local artists.

All of that comes alongside the library’s everyday role of providing a quiet, welcoming space where people of all ages can learn, connect and explore the world through reading.

The library is also active on social media where it regularly shares news about its events and programmes, as well as up-to-date reading lists and recommendations. It truly is a team that cares!

Other nominees in the Caring Team Award category included Hanover Park, Ottery, Sir Lowry’s Pass, Wynberg, Dunoon, Mamre, Retreat, Bridgetown, Lansdowne, Pinelands, Nazeema Isaacs and Fish Hoek libraries.

The award comes hot on the heels of the Long Service Awards, where Simon’s Town Library’s Kathleen Bailey was honoured for 25 years of dedicated service as Librarian-in-Charge!