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Books Council of Wales
The Books Council of Wales (Welsh: Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru; previously known as the Welsh Books Council) is a national charity and literature advocacy organisation in Wales. Established in 1961, it supports the publishing industry in Wales and is partly funded by the Welsh Government. The Council's aims are to promote the interests of Welsh language books and English language books of interest to Wales, to promote the publishing industry, and to assist and support authors by offering a number of services and distributing grants.
The Books Council of Wales came into existence in late 1961, taking the place of the Union of Welsh Books Societies. The organisation has deep roots in the voluntary sector, with local authorities providing significant financial support alongside central government funding in its early years.
The UK Government earmarked £1,000 in 1956 which assisted with the publishing of new works in Welsh, a sum which rose slowly over the following few years. The impetus at that time was very much from the voluntary sector, with local authorities providing more financial support than central government.
The organisation grew significantly under the directorship of Alun Creunant Davies, who became Director in 1965 and retired in 1987. During his tenure, the Council expanded from an organisation with approximately one member of staff to one with 26 staff and a turnover of about £500,000 per year by 1987.
In 1979, the Welsh Office provided the Books Council with an additional £55,000 per annum to administer and fund general books for children and periodicals for children and adults. In 1981-82, the Welsh Office provided all of its support for books in Welsh for adults to the WBC to administer, amounting to £285,000.
A significant milestone came in 2001-02 with the establishment of a Task and Finish Group on Publishing, which made 13 recommendations that were all accepted by the Welsh Government. The first recommendation was that the Welsh Government should give attention to the publishing industry as a whole – in the English and Welsh languages; and the second that the Welsh Government should pay the publishing grant directly to the WBC.
In 2004, following recommendations from the Welsh Assembly's Culture, Welsh Language and Sport Committee, a sum of £250,000 was provided to WBC to support English writing in Wales, in particular a new series of books under the title "Library of Wales".
On 1 April 2021, the Books Council transferred from being an unregistered charity to a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) with a new Board of Trustees. This change modernised the organisation's governance structure while maintaining its charitable status and mission.
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Books Council of Wales
The Books Council of Wales (Welsh: Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru; previously known as the Welsh Books Council) is a national charity and literature advocacy organisation in Wales. Established in 1961, it supports the publishing industry in Wales and is partly funded by the Welsh Government. The Council's aims are to promote the interests of Welsh language books and English language books of interest to Wales, to promote the publishing industry, and to assist and support authors by offering a number of services and distributing grants.
The Books Council of Wales came into existence in late 1961, taking the place of the Union of Welsh Books Societies. The organisation has deep roots in the voluntary sector, with local authorities providing significant financial support alongside central government funding in its early years.
The UK Government earmarked £1,000 in 1956 which assisted with the publishing of new works in Welsh, a sum which rose slowly over the following few years. The impetus at that time was very much from the voluntary sector, with local authorities providing more financial support than central government.
The organisation grew significantly under the directorship of Alun Creunant Davies, who became Director in 1965 and retired in 1987. During his tenure, the Council expanded from an organisation with approximately one member of staff to one with 26 staff and a turnover of about £500,000 per year by 1987.
In 1979, the Welsh Office provided the Books Council with an additional £55,000 per annum to administer and fund general books for children and periodicals for children and adults. In 1981-82, the Welsh Office provided all of its support for books in Welsh for adults to the WBC to administer, amounting to £285,000.
A significant milestone came in 2001-02 with the establishment of a Task and Finish Group on Publishing, which made 13 recommendations that were all accepted by the Welsh Government. The first recommendation was that the Welsh Government should give attention to the publishing industry as a whole – in the English and Welsh languages; and the second that the Welsh Government should pay the publishing grant directly to the WBC.
In 2004, following recommendations from the Welsh Assembly's Culture, Welsh Language and Sport Committee, a sum of £250,000 was provided to WBC to support English writing in Wales, in particular a new series of books under the title "Library of Wales".
On 1 April 2021, the Books Council transferred from being an unregistered charity to a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) with a new Board of Trustees. This change modernised the organisation's governance structure while maintaining its charitable status and mission.
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