 Lapsit proved so popular it was extended to twice a week in 1999.It was the precursor to "Rhymetime" now standardised across the entire North Shore Libraries system, a programme specifically designed to encourage active socialisation and the development of reading skills, through the focus on rhythm and rhyme.The initial Borough Council budget for books was £500 and when it opened in 1949 the library began with a collection of around 1500 items, "swelled by about another twenty books a month."