"The work of the heritage volunteers in ExeDFAS is centred on book refurbishment in Exeter Cathedral library.

A small group of ExeDFAS volunteers goes once or twice a month to spend the morning caring for books in Exeter Cathedral Library.

They examine the books, note their condition and any treatment needed; they then clean them, carry out minor repairs, polish them and make protective covers if needed. A record is kept of exactly what has been done, when, and by whom.

The volunteers were all trained originally by Catherine Bendix from NADFAS. There is a right and a wrong way to do everything! The work is a fairly humble housekeeping task, but it is necessary and is much appreciated by the Cathedral librarians.

It is rewarding for the volunteers because of the pleasure derived from handling books of such antiquity, interest or beauty, the feeling of being useful and helping to preserve something of value, and not least the enjoyment of working with a group of friends."
                                                                              Judy

Any member who is interested in joining the group should contact Judy, either at a monthly meeting or via the contact page on this website. The work does require proper training - a day's course which must be paid for. It might necessitate going to London.

The work is undertaken on two regular mornings when the part-time librarians are in the library. Space is very limited with only four able to work at one time. There are three of us at present.