https://www.publiclibrariesnews.com/2012/10/a-whole-pile-of-useful-stuff-prometheus-articles-debate-public-libraries.html What's happening to your library? Mon, 29 Oct 2012 22:57:42 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.3 https://www.publiclibrariesnews.com/2012/10/a-whole-pile-of-useful-stuff-prometheus-articles-debate-public-libraries.html#comment-5533 Mon, 29 Oct 2012 16:56:48 +0000 http://www.publiclibrariesnews.com/?p=2847#comment-5533 I won’t comment too much on the Darren Taylor article I’m sure there are Lambeth Campaigners with much more detailed knowledge than i have but the LSSI one smacks off desperation! This is a company who set up their UK office 3-5yrs (?) ago and claimed that they were interested in capturing 15% of the UK Public Library sector but as yet haven’t signed a contract, in fact Wokingham have pulled the plug on privatisation and they dropped out of the Croydon/Wandswroth process earlier this year! So as they say it’s been “slow going”! They’ve also been dropped in Texas and blocked in Simi Valley!
Their claims that ‘library staff “feel empowered” by them is hard to argue due to the fact that the only time you ever hear from their staff is when stories about them appear on their own website and their comments about UK Library staff not being interested in selling the service or being customer-focussed in my experience is nonsense, that’s all we’ve been doing or talking about for the last few years! In fact their comments are incredibly insulting and patronising but what do you expect from a company who introduced themselves to UK library staff by talking about the “slacks and trainers mentality” present in UK libraries!
Their other arguments about privatisation/outsourcing being successful in other sectors is not born out by research, data or experience, look at G4S, the Southern Care Homes scandal, what’s happening in the NHS, railways etc etc and their claims that the privatisation of UK library services will only benefit the ‘customer’ is not backed up, look at Hounslow run by JLIS hardly a shining example?
LSSI have an ideology and a product to sell which up untill now has totally failed in the UK and if you want a view of their US operations then just ask Lori Rivas (Save our Santa Clarita Libraries) or SEIU what they think (or look at my blog http://www.dontprivatiselibraries.blogspot.com)

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