Sidney Hockey

Sidney Hockey (commonly credited as S.W. Hockey) was a British library specialist who, in 1960, was appointed by the British Council, in cooperation with the governments of East Africa, as a library development organiser for the region.

He is known for Development of Library Services in East Africa (1960), a report on library provision in Kenya, Uganda, Tanganyika, and Zanzibar. The report formed the basis for the establishment and development of public library services in East Africa, including national library systems in the territories of Kenya, Uganda, Tanganyika, and Zanzibar

Education

According to a 1971 profile, Hockey was educated at University College School of Librarianship in London between 1930 and 1933.

Career

Later on, between 1948 and 1953, Hockey served as the Director of the Eastern Caribbean Regional Library, Head of the Jamaica Library Service (1953-1955), and of the Trinidad central Library (1956 -1960). Between 1960-1969, he was Libraries Organiser in East Africa and subsequently Director od the Swaziland National Library in 1970.

In 1959, Hockey was appointed by the British Council as a Libraries Development Organiser for the Kenya Colony , Tanganyika Territory and the Protectorate of Uganda. While in this position, he authored the Hockey report .

Legacy

Having been appointed as Libraries Development Organiser for East Africa by the British Council , Hockey ,in 1960 authored a report titled "The Development of Library Services In East Africa" at times referred to as the Hockey Report.

The recommendation for each territory to consider "the establishment of a central free public library service..... which will integrate all existing public library services and eventually be responsible for the administration of such services for the whole country" led to :

• The Uganda Public Libraries Act, 1964 which after enactment set up the Public Libraries Board which inherited the then East African Literature (Uganda Branch) library services.
• The Tanganyika Library Services Board Act (1963) which set up Tanganyika Library Service
• The Kenya National Library Service Board Act was passed in Parliament in 1965 and gazetted in 1967.

Related reading

• William Serwadda
• National Library of Uganda
• British Council