Three local residents – Aimée Margott, Lianne Sandford and Laura Taylor felt moved to do something practical to address issues of inequality and discrimination particularly in relation to children. They decided the power of books was one way to help and set up the Hythe Books for Change project in July 2020.
They followed the lead of the Books for Change project which has spread across Kent and further afield: visit their website here.
We caught up with them to find out more about their motivation towards making a change to the current state of the world.
The team initially fundraised in 2020 to donate a range of diverse and inclusive books to local schools and Hythe Library, and this year have been doing the same for local nurseries, playgroups and a Women’s Refuge. In total they have successfully raised over £3500 with the support of local donors and councillors and have donated 50 books to each of 6 Hythe primaries, 135 books to Hythe Library, and are about to distribute a total of 200 books amongst 6 local nurseries.
Aimee Margott
“Following the protests and the work carried out with the Black Lives Matter movement, I was inspired to set up Hythe Books for Change. Why? Because I want to make change in this world. It’s as simple as that. Change can start at any age, but I believe children should have the opportunity to learn about all different races, backgrounds, family dynamics, abilities etc. at a young age. These need to be normalised and not seen as different in a negative way, but in a positive way, because we’re all different.
Lianne Sandford
“The Black Lives Matter movement sparked a strong activist spark to be part of a positive change. Being six months pregnant with my 4th mixed raced child (half Bajan, quarter Welsh, quarter English). I knew I wanted to help create a world that didn’t reflect what I had been seeing on the news. I’m a big believer in black education and books that represent.
“I came across Emily (Books for Change) and I knew right away, I wanted to help her make it a success. She asked me to help Aimee build Hythe Books for Change.
“I have proudly chosen books, contacted local businesses for raffle donations and contacted black-owned businesses to donate to our nursery’s fundraiser with preschool learning and support resources.”
Laura Taylor
Laura was a school’s librarian in a number of primary and secondary schools in London before relocating and semi-retiring to Hythe. Over that time, she set up and developed libraries in brand new schools as well as refurbishing and revitalizing more “tired” libraries. She built up an extensive knowledge of children’s books in the process and was delighted to become involved with the Hythe Books for Change project where she could assist in the process of selecting some of the very best diverse and inclusive books available for children.