1. Hearing Voices – Social Change
The Human Library: a new chapter in community collaboration
Cathy McNulty (Occupational Therapist) with Natasha Laming (student Occupational Therapist)
Introduction Cathy McNulty is an occupational therapist with over 30 years experience in the profession, in particular mental health and group work.
She encourages skills in forming community partnerships and networks to enable participation and community involvement.
Working as a volunteer, in 2013 Cathy began a local group based in Lincolnshire which campaigns and raises awareness about mental health issues.
In November 2016, the group hosted a ‘Human Library’ with 14 Human Books loaned out 33 times. Semi-structured evaluation gave excellent feedback.
The Human Library
The concept of telling a stranger something personal to you is rather alien – it is not every day you speak openly to someone you have just met.
This is a basic principle of a Human Library, an event where books are people themselves and reading is a conversation.
Beginning in Denmark in 2000 at Roskilde Festival, the ‘Human Library’ is an international equalities organisation set up to challenge prejudice and discrimination through social contact.
Choose your Human book
IT’S GOOD TO TALK
Silence read the poster
Quiet was the command
Hush the words were whispered
Study, read, understand
But now a new library has opened
Where words are said out loud
Talking, living, human books
And vocal readers allowed
Come to the Human Library
Have the stories all explained
Know from your close engagement
That understanding will be gained
John Welsh 2016
The Music Men
Learning Outcomes
To learn and understand how Human Libraries can facilitate social dialogue; which may challenge stigma, discrimination and negative attitudes towards marginalised people in society.
Consider the potential role for occupational therapists to address the gap in academic research about Human Libraries, thereby supporting the growth of this inspirational work.
Hearing Voices – Social Change
Supports mental health service users and families/carers in helping to develop services
Aims to promote a more humanistic understanding of mental health
Aims to challenge stigma, discrimination and negative attitudes
Aims to promote the realisation that all human beings are vulnerable to mental health challenges (Romme & Escher 1993)
Opportunities for the future
Despite much excellent informal feedback about Human Libraries, there are few academic research papers about this work and none which include the role of occupational therapy.
This poster, in-part, addresses that gap and suggests that there is an open door for the growth of such inspirational work which promotes involvement and informs local communities.
Reading is a conversation
Human Library
comes to Sleaford
Rights of the Human Library
Books have the right to:
- be treated with respect
- ask any question
- not answer a question if they do not wish to.
- end a conversation if they wish
Readers have the right to:
- right to ask any question
- not to answer a question if they do not wish to
 Readers do not have the right to
- take a Book outside the Human Library
- to bend or tear pages, to annotate or take notes, and must return the Book in the same physical and mental condition in which it was issued
References FINLAY, L., (2004). The practice of psychosocial occupational therapy, 3rd edition. Cheltenham: Nelson Thornes.
HUMAN LIBRARY. On line:  accessed
McNULTY, C. (2008) The Sleaford MACA group. In Pollard N, Sakellariou D, Kronenberg F (2008) (eds), A Political Practice of Occupational Therapy, Edinburgh, Elsevier Science (p ).
NHS (2016) A report from the independent Mental Health Taskforce to the NHS in England February 2016 [on-line]  last accessed  (p2)
ROMME, M. A. J. and ESCHER, Sandra (1993). Accepting voices. MIND.
Contact details:
Acknowledgements
Hearing Voices – Social Change acknowledge and give thanks to the support from: Sleaford New Life Conference Centre, Sleaford 1Life Leisure Centre, Sheffield Hallam University, Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundations Trust, service users, volunteers, local community groups.
Photographers: Pete White and Chris Wood.
Poem ‘It’s Good to Talk’ written by John Welsh (2016) Permission freely given by people in photographs and book titles.