Supporting information for CILIP Guidelines on public library provision in England
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Libraries are important. A good library service provides a positive experience for local people, and demonstrates the value a local authority places on its community. CILIP has produced these guidelines in the public interest to advise portfolio holders in local Councils what makes a good library service.
To support the Guidelines we have provided useful background material in these areas:
1. Strategic planning: Government policy and national opportunities
Library policy and policy review
Wider government policy and national strategies relevant to public libraries
Key reports and commentaries on public libraries in recent years
2. Good practice: Case studies and background research
3. Performance: Monitoring, evaluation and improvement
Strategic planning: Government policy and national opportunities
Library policy and policy review
Wider government policy and national strategies relevant to public libraries
- Strong and Prosperous Communities: the Local Government white Paper, 2006.
The aim of this White Paper was to give local people and local communities more influence and power. It forms the background to Local Area Agreements and Local Strategic Plans and is the policy basis for community safety, cohesion and community engagement.
Libraries are distinct centres of local community life for social and cultural resources and for information and citizenship. They are a natural draw for disadvantaged communities and have great potential to develop in this area.
Volume 1
Volume 2
- Living Places is a national programme about culture and sport-led community regeneration. It is chaired by MLA and based on an agreement between five of the leading cultural agencies: Arts Council England, The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE), English Heritage, the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA), and Sport England, their sponsoring department, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).
New communities are being established as our society grows and changes. Access to culture and sport is an important part of the quality of life and that planning for new communities needs to take this into account. Living Places have produced a toolkit of advice, guidance and case studies for a variety of practitioners to use.
- Building a society for all ages, Department for Work and Pensions, 2009. The governments strategy for meeting the challenges of an ageing society is out for consultation until 12th October 2009. A summary of responses is to be published in December 2009.
Libraries are popular among today’s older generations what will ensure they will serve upcoming generations who will have different life experiences and needs?
- The Learning Revolution, DIUS (now BIS). Libraries contribute to the learning agenda for everyone from early years, through school, in college or university. People make significant use of libraries for informal learning. The plan includes a £20m Transformation Fund to support innovative provision.
Libraries are significant places for information on learning training and work and provide resources for learning both in the library and online.
- Digital Britain, DCMS and BIS. In spite of the growth in computers and use of the Internet many people still don’t have a computer and many do not know how to make the most of the technology.
Public libraries are the only place for free computer use and for help with finding information. Many reference and learning resources are now only on the Internet and are free through libraries the way the print version used to be.
- Every Child Matters is the Government strategy for a shared programme of change to improve outcomes for all children and young people.
Libraries play a critical role in early years reading and learning and could do more. They are a valued resource for parents, grandparents, carers and everyone concerned for the welfare and development of children.
- Families, learning and culture: Inspiring families through museums, libraries and archives, NIACE 2008. Illustrates how libraries work with families. It has useful a checklist for local authorities to identify how to develop family learning programmes.
Libraries still have more potential to develop services in this area and NIACE is a key source of ideas and advice.
- Aiming High for Young People, the Government’s strategy for young people. Libraries should be playing a big part in providing a place to go, information, leisure and culture and support. Learning opportunities targeted at young people not in education, employment of training (NEETS) should be a priority.
Libraries reputedly lose users in their teens. However, there have been several programmes targeting reading and wider library services that have been very successful and have engaged young people in wider library development. There is considerable untapped potential for libraries to work with young people.
- Developing the local government services model: new ways of working and new models of provision within the public library service – a working paper, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP for the Department for Communities and Local Government. 2007.
Libraries are rooted in their local community (the variation being the bigger city central libraries which, in addition, have a wider city and regional reach). Local councils can choose to give libraries a bigger role as access points to council information and services; they can also look at new ways of managing libraries in partnership with agencies and local communities.
- Reading for life is a website of ideas and resources for reading development that grew from the National Year of Reading.
Key reports and commentaries on public libraries in recent years
The following is a selection that might be most useful to portfolio holders and other elected members in informing policy or management decisions:
- Taking Stock: the future of our public library service, UNISON 2008
- A research study of 14-35 year olds for the Future Development of Public Libraries, Define Research & Insight for MLA, DCMS and the Laser Foundation 2006.
"… qualitative study involving 14-35 year olds in a range of locations across England conducted in Autumn 2005 … to develop full understanding and provide evidence for potential future strategies that will result in increased usage amongst the 14-35 age group” from the Executive summary (PDF, 1.59 MB)
- Libraries Impact project, LASER Foundation. 2005
"The methodologies will thus support library authorities in the collection of both quantitative and qualitative data for the shared priority themes…"
- House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee Report on Public Libraries 2005
- New Library: the People’s Network Library and Information Commission 1997
This sets out the case and a strategy for the networking of public libraries. The resulting £170 million National Lottery fund was intended to shift public libraries into the digital era of the 21st century.
Good practice: Case studies and background research
- The CILIP Libraries Change Lives Award is established as one of the leading accolades in the library and information world. The Award highlights and rewards good practice in any innovative project which:
- Changes lives
- Brings people together
- Involves user communities
- Demonstrates innovation and creativity
- Develops staff and services
They can be reading projects, learning projects, or projects that promote information. They must be shown to have affected people’s lives for the better, whoever those people might be
Not only is this a good source of ideas but you should consider if your library service should submit a service or facility that you have developed.
- The Museums Libraries and Archives Council has created a case studies database that includes:
- Good practice examples
- Case studies of innovative projects
- Research reports
You can search for cases by region, priority group strategic themes etc.
- The new website of the Society of Chief Librarians incorporates the 'Libraries Inspire' campaign to help public libraries promote services locally and nationally.
Libraries Inspire case studies and stories illustrate the powerful impact that libraries make on peoples’ lives - how libraries help people improve their health and wellbeing, learn to read and acquire new skills, find a job, and improve and enrich their lives. Also included is recent news, statistics and a press room.
- Designing Libraries: the gateway to better libraries is a website showing new and recent library buildings and refurbishments. Hundreds of examples illustrate good design, suppliers and funding arrangements. With a e-newsletter, discussion list and several helpful aids it is a most useful resource for all concerned with the design of effective library spaces.
Performance: Monitoring, evaluation and improvement
Performance evaluation is an essential ingredient of good management and is necessary if local authorities are to maximise the value of their spending, improve performance and improve the quality of life of local people. As important is the need for local people to see for themselves the performance of their library service and for councillors to actively engage local people in decision-making for the future.
- A Passion for Excellence – culture and sport improvement strategy An integrated national offer of support to councils to help them improve culture and sport services This document provides councils with a comprehensive list of the support available to them from NDPBs and IDeA. It is a substantial list of resources. Probably best used by councillors in discussion with managers to consider which will be most useful to your authority. It is likely that it will also appear in relation to other services and worth remembering that councils can approach the national agencies for information, guidance and sometimes, support when considering future strategies for services.
- Culture and Sport Improvement toolkit The toolkit supports self assessment and self improvement across the culture and sport sector along with a range of external challenge process including peer review, validation and peer supported improvement.
- Inspiring Learning for All MLA developed this framework by which services can identify learning and social outcomes, assess impact and plan improvement. It has recently been updated and streamlined, much easier resource for all to use.
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The Library Benchmark, developed by MLA, is a set of output measures to help library services benchmark themselves against peers and good practice.
- The background and opportunities are set out in The Role of Museums. Libraries, Archives and Local Area Agreements, MLA 2009
- A passion for excellence: an improvement strategy for culture and sport offers support to local government as 'leaders of place', working with local partners to deliver better outcomes, improve the quality of life and improve services to local people. DCMS, IDeA and others.