South Shore Public Libraries is governed by the South Shore Regional Library Board and operates under the terms of the Nova Scotia Libraries Act.

Mission Statement

South Shore Public Libraries celebrates reading, discovering, learning and sharing.

History

The library region, the youngest of the nine in the province, was formed in 1972 by the Town of Bridgewater, the Town of Lunenburg, and the Town of Mahone Bay. The Municipality of the District of Lunenburg joined in 1973, and the Municipality of Chester in 1978. The former Municipality of the County of Queens and the former Town of Liverpool (now part of the Region of Queens Municipality), joined in 1976 and 1981 respectively.

In 2007 and early 2008, staff, Board, Friends and volunteers participated in refreshing the organization's mission statement and choosing a name that better reflects what it does. Today, South Shore Public Libraries has more than 25 staff, and provides services through three town libraries, a mobile library and special services like Books by Mail.

• Bridgewater Library
• Lunenburg Library
  
• Thomas H. Raddall Library in Liverpool
• Outreach Library serves rural Lunenburg and Queens Counties
  
• Library Administration is located on Route 3 in Hebbville

Library services, including book borrowing and Internet access, are free. Overdue fines are not generally charged — see the Services page for detailed information. You may also read a selection of Library policies.

Funding

The Provincial Department of Education provides approximately 70% of public library funding in Nova Scotia. A further 24% is provided by the municipalities -- this portion is divided among the six participating municipal units on the South Shore based on population and is roughly $5.18 per capita. The South Shore Regional Library Board fundraises for the remaining 6% of its budget.

In 2007-08, the annual budget for the Library was approximately $1.3 million. Buildings, furniture and some office equipment are provided in addition to the regular municipal contribution by the Town of Bridgewater, the Town of Lunenburg and the Region of Queens. The Town of Lunenburg and the Region of Queens also provide extra funds that allow those libraries to open on Sundays.