Attribution: Image by PublicDomainPictures from Pixabay

I am working on a project for LIRG who have identified the need to develop a rationale for how and where to focus limited research funding supporting library practitioners across the UK.

The project will ask:

• What future developments will libraries in the UK need to significantly engage with, in the next ten years?
• Which of these areas are most critical for us to understand and require in-depth focused research to support this (and thus benefit from funding)?  

The key purpose of the research is to provide a clear indication of the research focus for libraries for the future. It is anticipated that this would support coalescence of activity in critical areas for the LIS community.

Over the last two months I have been working on several aspects of the project simultaneously:

Firstly, ensuring that the nuts and bolts of the research process such as ethics approval and relevant documentation is finalized for participants.

Secondly I have been searching for, and collating the themes, for as many conference programmes and 2024 ‘calls for papers’ across the profession as possible.

The following groups conference information have been included to date in the analysis:

1. CILIPS
2. CILIP : conference and Libraries Rewired
3. WHELF
4. RLUK
5. CONUL
6. SLA
7. LILAC
8. The EDGE Conference
9. LibPMC
10. University of Northampton Researcher Conference
11. CILIP’s HLG conference
12. BIALL
13. CALC
14. Academic Libraries North
15. Libraries Connected

I have amalgamated and then themed the outputs of all the conference listings, with some indication of the types of conference papers that have led to the creation of a specific theme. The current list is large; librarians certainly have a wide range of interests, some specifically niche to their area, and some that are likely to be relevant to all. The next step to this part of the process is to test the list with library staff from all areas of the profession to ensure that the list is robust and relevant for all.

In order to undertake the second part of the research process, in advance of the final Delphi workshop I have also been making contact with as many colleagues/organizations across the profession as possible, initially following my original research plan and then diversifying in other directions as other leads made themselves apparent. The aim is to find as many staff from all areas of the profession to check the themed list created through the conference activity.

IF YOU ARE WILLING AND INTERESTED IN HELPING WITH THIS STAGE OF THE RESEARCH PLEASE GET IN TOUCH! Responses to this element of the project need to be completed and returned to me by 7th February: elizabeth.tilley@cantab.net

I am already aware of the many issues that arise when undertaking a research project and what might have seemed so simple on paper, doesn’t always translate into reality. I genuinely consider myself to be a problem-solver, so I have made at least one significant change in the second part of the research process. I had planned to hold semi-structured interviews with library staff rather than ask for an email response, however both time constraints AND a realization that actually I want to ask everyone the same three questions, has led to a change in the process; this should not be to the detriment in the results at this stage of the process, rather it should allow me to access more varied staff across the profession in the long run. 

I’m looking forward to hearing from lots of you this month…………

Libby Tilley elizabeth.tilley@cantab.net