From Jack Worrall.
I READ with great intereset the interview with the executive director of the Société Jersiaise and in particular her urgent appeal for financial help.

As a volunteer helper in the Lord Coutanche Library for the last 20 years I am only too well aware of the severe straits in which we find ourselves and hope most earnestly that her call will bring forth much-needed support.

I note that Mrs Syvret states that it is not the intention of the Société to lay off any members of staff. She makes no mention, however, of the very recent loss of the services of the librarian and the (to many incomprehensible) decision of the executive committee not to replace her.

It means that, probably for the first time in its long and distinguished history, the Société is without a qualified custodian of its unique and incomparable collections of books, learned papers, maps, and publications of all sorts pertaining to the Island’s history and this just as the out-going librarian had made such a huge inroad into the vast backlog of cataloguing and helped bring the Société into the 21st century by making so much material available on the internet to researchers world-wide.

It is to be hoped that a speedy solution will be found to our present problem. The States need to be made aware of the difficulties facing the Heritage Trust and the Société Jersiaise arising from serious underfunding.

They should realise that the safe-guarding of the Island’s historical and cultural heritage is every bit as important as the safe-guarding of its coastline. The lack of funding means that both organisations are unable to provide the full service that their vast collections merit.