Ian Anstice

“In relation to investigating complaints made about the Borough of Brent’s decision to close libraries within its area, officials here are in the process of assessing all relevant information on this matter and a decision by the Secretary of State is anticipated in September.” Email from DCMS legal advisers to Brent campaign solicitor, 18th August

“This is a very important development and one which you all need to grapple with straightaway. The Secretary of State has special powers to direct a public inquiry into the planned closures – just like the Wirral Inquiry – and he can even prevent them from happening while that inquiry happens, or at all.” Brent campaign solicitor to campaigners, same day.

News

• Budget cuts force week-long closure of Seattle Public Libraries – q13fox.com (USA).  “”Without the closure, it would have been difficult to generate the magnitude of savings necessary without cutting more operating hours or further reducing the book budget,” interim chief executive officer Lin Schnell said. “We understand how much people depend and rely on our services, but these are very difficult economic times.”
• Frankly, we’ll sue the library – Vineyard Gazetter (USA).  “A private consultant hired by the Edgartown Library Foundation is threatening legal action for copyright infringement over a phrase used to promote an annual community fund-raiser for the town public library.”.  Consultant claims using lines “Frankly, we love our library” and “We love our library” are copyrighted terms that can only be used with her permission. 

• Privatize libraries in their interest – Pasadena Star-News (USA).   “At a time when the California Legislature has slashed critical programs and services in an effort to balance its own budget and is considering the need to increase some taxes, the $28 per year special library tax that Santa Clarita residents had been paying for library operations was eliminated, due to the fiscally responsible actions of the locally elected Santa Clarita City Council. In this era of diminishing funding for local government services and over extended budgets, contracting for library services is one way to improve libraries, while reducing the tax burden on our residents.”
• Reading revolution – 14 marvellous libraries – Web Urbanist.  Includes a library whose entire exterior is an LCD display.  Whitechapel Idea Store is the sole British example – “A traditional library is combined with space for classes inside a diaphanous blue and green glass volume in Adjaye Associates’ Idea Store Whitechapel. The flagship building of a program that aims to push libraries into the 21st century, including the latest digital technology, Idea Store includes a five-story atrium.”
• WI to support libraries campaign – BookSeller.  “The WI’s membership are being asked to each borrow a book from their local library on the day “in recognition of the continued importance of the WI’s early vision to widen educational opportunities”.

Changes

• Oxfordshire – Campaign group Friends of Goring Library.  
• Scottish Borders – Cuts in opening hours including in Melrose.  

Local News

• Barnet – W2LW “Walk to the Library Week” – Save Friern Barnet Library.  “The library was packed full of children busy playing games, learning and having fun. It felt like the whole of Friern Barnet’s community had turned up in support of the walk to the library week.” … “W2LW showed how a community could build a future. We feel it gave generations a sense of hope and purpose and above all else, a sense of fun.”
• Bolton -Six things you could do to help save the libraries – Save Bolton Libraries (Facebook).  Includes the two events below plus helping out on town centre campaign stall, join local campaign, contact councillor/MP, fill in consultation form,
• Future event – “Save Bolton’s Libraries” – Thursday 8th September 7pm, Central Library Lecture Theatre – best selling local author Ruth Hamilton, award winning children’s author and campaigner Alan Gibbons and popular local playwright Les Smith (‘And Did Those Feet’ at the Octagon) are all speaking, with messages of support from other writers. We will have posters to display shortly.”
• Future event – “What Future for Bolton’s Libraries? – Thursday 15th September 7pm, Central Library Lecture Theatre – Bolton News deputy editor Lynn Ashwell chairs a debate between politicians, trade unionists and campaigners – Cllr Cliff Morris, leader of the council (Labour), Cllr John Walsh leader of the Conservative Group, Cllr David Wilkinson or Cllr Carole Swarbrick (Liberal Democrats), Alan Johnson (Green Party), Ian McHugh (SBLC) and a Unison speaker.” 

• Croydon – Chance to have your say on Croydon libraries … – Sanderstead Library Campaign Group.  “With a decision imminent many Croydon residents are still unaware of the market-testing undertaken on Croydon libraries, with a view to progressing outsourcing them all to a private company, other local authorities or other interested groups. Campaigners regularly meet with people who are not only unaware but laugh at such a prospect in disbelief. Unfortunately it is not a joke.” “…it would appear to be a admission by Croydon Council that they are unable to effectively manage their network of thirteen libraries.”
• Oxfordshire – Vilagers voice their anger at library closure threat – Henley Standard.   Goring Library will have staffing reduced by two-thirds, to be made up by volunteers.  Friends group says “While we applauded the original decision of the council to keep Goring library open, our response to the consultation decision to cut funding and the supporting evidence was more of a slow hand clap.”  Council expects volunteers to pay for own CRB checks.  Criteria used to select cut libraries accused of being flawed and biased.
• Scottish Borders – Concerns new library service could spoil Melrose gem – Border Telegraph. Libraries will have reduced hours as well as merging one-stop shops with libraries.  Fears over confidentiality (and waste of library buildings) expressed. 
• Surrey – Latest SLAM plans – Surrey Libraries Action Movement.  Including Facebook, Twitter, local petition, the WI, UNISON, contacting MPs and councillors.
• Warwickshire – Communities in bids to save libraries – Warwick Courier.  “Business cases have been put forward for local communities to run all 16 of the libraries set to close under Warwickshire County Council’s drive to cut costs. Some 100 library staff were set to lose their jobs in the shake-up.” 
• Wiltshire – Volunteers in Wiltshire train to run local libraries – BBC.   300 volunteers in final week of training.  They will start working in libraries (which have lost 17 staff in 2011 and 26 more in Dec 2010, including 9 out of 13 branch managers) in the next four weeks in order to avoid 10 branch and 5 mobile closures.  “So if the library’s going to close and volunteers can save it, that’s the way forward. Quite simple really.”.

News

• 15 reasons why bookstore/library partnerships are beneficial – Bookselling This Week (USA).  Libraries have the space, bookshops the contacts … and 14 more reasons.
• A-Level boy, 10, is off to Eton – London Evening Standard. 
• Gifted boy received top GCSE grade – Barking and Dagenham Post. “A star student who began reading aged three in one of Barking and Dagenham’s libraries has just been awarded a top GCSE grade at the age of nine.” … “My wife Ronke and I go there a lot to read the papers and the idea was for the children to be playing games. While in the library, he took to reading.”

• Katharine Whitehorn experience – Guardian.   “You probably know the conversation: about a library closing, or whether my bookshop people are as charming as yours; then someone will say in superior tones that surely it’s all easier and cheaper online…”.  Libraries are more social than Amazon.
• Michael Porter (Library Renewal) – This Week in Libraries (Netherlands).  “Michael has travelled for 4 years all across the USA visiting libraries and helping them to get online so he really knows libraries in all sizes and shapes and has seen the changes that took place. He has worked with The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, with OCLC and on Webjuncyion. We are now standing at the crossroads. There lies an enormous chance for a Library renaissance as the world may never have seen before. Michael and a group of great minds are discussing this and thinking of how this library can look like and what services it should offer and how it can bring people together.”
• Public libraries: a long overdue argument – What’s Next: Top Trends.   “Whether or not we will want libraries in the future I cannot say, but I can categorically state we will need them, because libraries aren’t just about the books they contain. Moreover, it is a big mistake, in my view, to confuse the future of books or publishing with the future of public libraries. They are not the same thing.”…”I’d say the answer to this is that public libraries are important because of a word that’s been largely ignored or forgotten and that word is Public.”

“In a world cluttered with too much instant opinion and we need good librarians more than ever. Not just to find a popular book, but to recommend an obscure or original one. Not only to find events but to invent them. The internet can do this too, of course, but it can’t look you in the eye and smile gently whilst it does it.”

• Three simple marketing rules all libraries should like by – theWikiman.   (1) Market the service, not the content (2) No one cares about the how (3) Market what they value, but continue to do what we value.
• Want to join a library? Have you had a sex change? – Telegraph.  “Councils are asking residents who want to borrow books from public libraries whether they have HIV, schizophrenia, or have had a sex change…”.  Islington, Brent and Leicestershie ask questions in order to tie in with equalities legislation, others don’t. Civitas and Taxpayer’s Alliance, as well as the article writer, think money and time could be spent better elsewhere.
• Want to join the library? Have you had a sex change? – BookTrade Info.

Changes

• Brighton & Hove – Refreshments and spaces with toys to be introduced in all libraries, free wifi at Jubilee Library.   
• Newham – Canning Town Library to incorporate Council one stop shop.

Local News

• Bolton – Area forums money could save libraries under threat – Bolton News.   Conservatives also want libraries to be run by charitable trusts and volunteers to work alongside libraries. 
• Bradford – Addingham library agreement set for signatures – Ilkey Gazette.  Volunteers hope to run library – which would otherwise have closed – from 1st October, already undergoing CRB checks.  
  
• Brighton & Hove – Shake-up promised for 16 Brighton and Hove libraries – Brighton and Hove News.   “Library users across Brighton and Hove are being promised more services and a better experience.  All 16 libraries in the city are to offer refreshments, have more modern computers and take action to tackle noise nuisance. The main Jubilee Library in Brighton is even to have free wifi.” … ““We think libraries are a crucial, core council service. So we’ll be actively pursuing opportunities for refurbishment or redevelopment of libraries.”
• Dorset – County fight to save libraries takes to the internet – Bridport News.   “The Women’s Institute has now launched an online petition calling on the government to ‘honour its commitment to act as a champion of the library service’. The Friends of Charmouth Library are signing the petition and are encouraging others to do the same.” … ““If the WI e-petition gets 100,000 signatures, the issue must be considered for parliamentary debate so the Secretary of State will no longer be able to hide behind excuses.”
• Lewisham – Reality of Lewisham’s independent libraries – Studio Living.   Crofton Library, now known as Crofton Community Hub, after being given to Eco Computer Systems, refused to allow a local Literary Festival to put a poster up without being charged.  Further investigation shows that the policy on this was still not clear at the time of asking.  The owner of the company running the library has since decided that local posters can be put up for free. 

News

• At last, Tony Blair is talking sense about alienated youth – Guardian. “Likewise, the endless twaddle that the commentariat trundles out about libraries. Again, the focus is on the working-class child who is just waiting to be borne off on a shining chariot marked: “In reading lies knowledge. In knowledge lies wisdom.” Often, this admirable and idealised prodigy turns out to have been based on the writer himself. I loved going to the library as a child too, and I’m grateful to my mother for taking me. But I’d be wary of lionising anything just because it was a helpful addition to a stable, loving, working-class upbringing, 40 years ago. There’s something self-regarding about these misty-eyed arguments….”
• Alan Gibbon comment – “…Wailing that times are tough and saying that we can’t do everything is counter productive. Acting as a liberal Trojan horse and justifying back door attacks on libraries and book gifting is dangerous. Deborah Orr makes some valid points in this article but could end up demoralising the very people who care most about literacy as a vehicle for social change. She can do better.”
• Edinburgh Book Festival sculptures are a “whodunnit?” –  BBC.  “It also contains a teabag full of letters, an unmarked book – and has a label marked “in support of libraries, books, words, ideas and festivals. Over the past year similar sculptures have been left at the National Library of Scotland, the Scottish Poetry Library and the Scottish Storytelling Centre but their creator remains a mystery.”
• GCSEs: sloppy grammar will cost pupils one in ten marks – Telegraph. 
• Karin Slaighter writes story to help save libraries – Huffington Post (USA).  “An outspoken library advocate, the author wrote a piece last year in the Atlanta Journal Constitution stating that “the funding of American libraries should be a matter of national security.”
• Libraries are for everyone – Alan Gibbons.  Emphasises DCMS report says libraries serve all classes and age groups, to great customer satisfaction, despite poor funding.  “To sum up, libraries are as relevant and necessary as they ever were. They could be greater if they were properly led and not served up the dog’s breakfast of the Future Libraries Programme. The principles on which they were built are unimpeachable.”
• New city librarian aims to deliver “great customer experiences” – Seattle Times (USA).   “But the primary reason libraries are still important is their role as a central reference point, Turner said, and not just for term-paper writers who want to know the color of Helen of Troy’s hair or who fought in the War of the Roses. One recently widowed man came in for help with his checkbook because his wife had always handled their finances, said Andra Addison, library communications director.”
• Take a leaf out of New York’s book: Invest in your libraries, don’t close them – London Evening Standard.  “Christopher Platt, director of collections and circulation operations at New York Public Library, which operates 100 libraries, spoke as the Evening Standard’s Save Our Libraries campaign is getting behind Londoners fighting to keep their local branches open in the face of public spending cuts.”
• Library cuts will be devastating for children – London Evening Standard.  “Hundreds of residents have signed a petition calling on Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt to look into the closures, which parents said would have a “devastating” effect on children, particularly those who have no other access to books.” 

Changes

• Cornwall: Up to 30 managers (all) to go.  Staffing reduced to, in some cases, one paid member of library staff per library. Non-library staff from other “face to face” services to be used instead.
• Oxfordshire:  Campaign groups:  Save Our Library (Sonning Common),  Save Oxfordshire’s Libraries (Facebook),  Blackbird Leys (Facebook), Save Headington Library, Old Marston (Facebook), Friends of Summertown Library, Save Bampton Library (Facebook), Friends of Benson Library, Save Deddington Library, This is Our Woodcote Library.  
• Surrey: Campaign group: Byfleet Library Action Group.

Local News

• Barnet – Confusion surrounds plan to relocated HGS library into Institute – Barnet Today.  Institute says it is not possible to locate library there, Artsdepot says it has not been asked by Council to locate two libraries there. 
• Bolton – Consultation continues over future of libraries – Bolton News.  “Leader of Bolton Council, Councillor Cliff Morris, said: “We are doing all we can to encourage people to take part in the consultation and have their say on the proposals for the library network. We welcome the views of everyone who has an opinion on the changes and have enabled people to fill out the questionnaire online.”
• Brent – Labour MP Barry Gardiner donates to campaign to save Brent’s libraries – Save Kensal Rise Library.  “Labour MP Barry Gardiner has donated to the campaign to save Brent’s libraries. The Brent North MP is backing the campaign to save the six libraries under threat, which are heavily used by young people in the borough.
• Fundraiser: City of London guided walks – Save Kensal Rise Library. 
• Cornwall – Library service fears raised – Falmouth Packet.  “Liberal Democrats at Cornwall Council have claimed that a plan to strip out managers from the county’s libraries could damage the service for users.” – Council claims most public “will not notice any decline” as up to 30 managers cut and library staff culled.  Non-library staff to be used from other “face to face” services.
• Flintshire – Garden City Library to be demolished – Flintshire Chronicle.   Library closed in May.  “Sealand councillor Chris Jones said: “It is very sad that the building will be gone. It’s the end of an era, but it is better than it being empty. Boarded up buildings are an eyesore.”

• Suffolk – Aldeburgh: group outline library vision – EADT.  “Clive Fox, chairman of the steering group, said: “At the heart of our proposal was the strongly held view that the way forward must be through genuine partnerships between the county as statutory library authority and local people, who should be trusted to know best what they need and how to achieve it.”

News

• Activism, advocacy and professional identity – Johanna Bo Anderson’s blog.  “Activism is about politics and ethics, social outcomes and shaping the future – the aim is not just to promote services and influence change but to be the change.”… “I believe that my need to get involved as an activist stems from a lack of advocacy of public libraries in the past. If we had been promoting them and raising their profile all along we would not be in the mess we are in now”

• Caistor – Village SOS (BBC One). Caistor Arts and Culture Centre – old church turned into library amongst other things, with help from council, the Big Lottery Fund and the BBC.
• Communities anxious for change – Locality.  “With over 500 community-led regeneration practitioners and supporters expected to attend, Locality ’11 will be the largest event of its kind across the country.” Tickets cost up to £420 plus VAT.
• DCMS Taking Part survey: imagine what could be achieved if we invested in our public libraries – Voices for the Library.  “what is most stark about these figures is that social background appears to have no bearing on library usage…The report also demonstrated the importance of public libraries for children, not least considering the increasing cull of school libraries … If authorities are threatening to close up to 50% of libraries when usage has remained stable, will similar cuts be applied to other council services? … Councillors and politicians may be keen to argue that libraries are becoming irrelevant, in order to justify closing them or staffing them with volunteers. The facts suggests otherwise.”
• Ground level view – Community Knowledge Hub.   “Thanks to all the councils and communities that have been in touch, we’ve recently been in discussions regarding the potential community transfer of more than fifty libraries! I will in due course be contacting everyone who has expressed interest to formally join the network, so please bear with me.” … list of volunteer-run libraries currently being developed by CHK/Locality … “All of this demonstrates that, while there is absolutely the potential to support innovative service transformation in relation to libraries, communities need support and the cooperation of local authorities and other partners to achieve this.”
• Outsourcing urged to alleviate austerity – Financial Times.   Chief Exec of Capita says “When you can see local authorities closing libraries, swimming pools, it’s criminal,” he said. “It’s a political agenda. Billions of pounds could be saved and the public wouldn’t notice the difference.” … “The FTSE 100 company, which already provides services such as storing criminal records for the Home Office and collecting television licence fees for the BBC, expects a wave of outsourcing as the squeeze in public spending forces central and local government to look at radical ways of slashing costs.”… ““Why wouldn’t you outsource council tax collection rather than closing a library?” Mr Pindar asked.”.  LGA says ““Cuts to council budgets are both big and front-loaded, which means savings have to be made now and an impact on services is regrettably inevitable. To suggest otherwise is either self-serving or naive,”
• Capita Chief calls cuts criminal – EWeek.   Campaign4Change points out Capita makes huge amounts of money from government/council contracts and that any outsourcing should be to smaller companies.
• September is Library Card Sign-up Month – ALA (USA).  “a time to remind parents and children that a library card is the most important school supply of all” 

• Von Hahn: Turning the page on sleek architecture – Star (Canada).  “In a city as diverse as ours, with a large population of new Canadians from all over the world, free access to great works, tools for learning and information is so essential, it’s obvious cost-efficiency types keen on closures and privatization haven’t read past the introduction.”.  Toronto has been remodellign many of its library buildings, emphasising them as “urban living rooms”.  Usage has gone up by from 22 to 66% in each.

Changes 

Cornwall – 19 library managers may be lost.  £1 million cut.
Herefordshire – 2 mobiles have now been withdrawn, replaced by needs-tested home delivery service.
Warwickshire – Between 86 to 120 jobs to be lost as volunteers take over running of 16 branches.   

Local News

• Barnet  Have you ever used the green? – Times series.  “As part of the campaign to save Friern Barnet Library, we are considering applying to have the piece of green land to the west of the library designated as a village green.”
• Bradford – Campaigns to keep lending facilities open – Telegraph & Argus.  “District libraries under threat of closure have until next week to come up with a rescue plan. Libraries in Wrose, Heaton, Wilsden, Addingham and Denholme are all earmarked for closure as part of a bid by Bradford Council to save £70,000.”  Deadline has been extended twice.  “In Addingham, the campaign to save the village library is turning into quite a success story, with nearly 30 volunteers on board so far. A charitable association has been set up and several meetings have been held to look at developing the layout of the 17th century building once it has been taken over on October 1.”
• Brent – Campaigners raise money to support action against library closures – Harrow Times.    “Residents campaigning to save Preston Library from closure spent last Friday collecting money outside Sainsbury’s, in Kenton, after taking the council to the High Court last month … On Sunday, September 18, Councillor Paul Lorber (Liberal Democrats) will take part in the Fryent Country Park 5km run in support of the campaign.”
• “Give us inquiry into Brent’s library closures” minister told – Harrow Observer.   “Anti-cuts campaigners who manned a stall outside Neasden Library in Neasden Lane, Neasden, on Saturday collected more than 160 names urging Tory minister Jeremy Hunt to intervene.” … “Liberal Democrat group leader Councillor Paul Lorber said: “Irrespective of the outcome of the legal action, the secretary of state still has a responsibility to decide whether Brent Council is capable of running a ‘comprehensive and efficient’ library service with just six libraries. “If there is any element of doubt then he should order an inquiry. He should not judge himself.”
• Petitions rally support for Brent libraries – BookSeller.  “Many people said how much they and their children value the services that the libraries provide. For their sake I hope Jeremy Hunt listens and orders an inquiry.”
• Cornwall  – Library job cuts lead to quality fears – BBC.  19 managers may go.  “Lib Dem Councillor Alex Folks said the library staff “are excellent but this proposal will axe the most experienced leadership”. Mr Roden [UNISON] said losing experienced staff will “inevitably lead to a reduced service” and the proposals could see many of Cornwall’s top library managers taking “voluntary redundancy or revised roles”.  Former manager says “If they are more under stress, they are less likely to give the great personal service which our library staff have in the past.”
• Dorset  – Libraries unite to investigate council’s offer – Dorset Echo.   ““We have also recommended that, wherever possible, negotiations should be run by Ad Lib on behalf of all nine libraries, rather than all try and deal with the County Council on our own.” … However, Mr Chaney added: “When it comes to things like money I think each community will have to do its own negotiations because it may depend how much each community has got in its pot.” 
• Herefordshire – Future of mobile library service – Herefordshire Council.   2 mobile libraries withdrawn, to be replaced by a “library home delivery service” assessed on needs of health and mobility.
• Somerset  – Taunton Library cuts opening hours – This is the WestCountry.   “REDUCED opening hours at Taunton Library will come into effect from October 3 as part of massive cutbacks by Somerset County Council.”  Cut of ten hours per week.  Legal injunction means ““Whilst the injunction stops the withdrawal of funding, the council is still able to change the opening hours of the 23 other libraries.”
• Warwickshire – Residents in bid to take over threatened Warwickshire libraries – Coventry Telegraph.   “Coun Colin Hayfield, Warwickshire County Council’s portfolio holder for customers, access and physical assets, said: “It’s extremely encouraging to have heard from all 16 communities where libraries were seen as no longer viable.”  Council extended deadline after just six submissions were originally received.  “The removal of “unsustainable” libraries from council control could see between 86 to 120 people lose their jobs.”
• Westminster – Anger over closure of Victoria library and three One Stop services – Westminster Chronicle.  “St James’s Library and the Victoria One Stop service, both in Victoria Street, closed their doors for the last time on Tuesday.”
• Wirral  – So this is what they mean by “lifelong learning” – Wirral Globe.   “From now on, when parents are going through the legal process of officially naming their child at the Registrar’s Office, they will also be handed an interim membership card for their child for Wirral Libraries.”  Libraries are “packed with music, stories, games, crafts, puzzles, child-size furniture, picture-books, and – significantly – other children.”

News

• Better off more likely to use libraries – BookSeller.  Summary of DCMS report given a rather different headline than that when it was covered by this webpage yesterday.
• DCMS Report suggests libraries are “not just for the Middle Class” – Booktrade.info.
• Fréquentation des bibliothèques stable en Angleterre – Actualitte (France).
• Council chief executives enjoy pay rises as services are cut – Daily Telegraph.  “Town hall chief executives have seen their pay packets rise by as much as £17,000 while cutting front-line services, including libraries, care for the elderly and bin collections.”…”pay package rose as Tory-led Essex council announced that 450 jobs were to be cut as it struggled to find savings of £98 million. The council has faced controversy after announcing plans to close 12 youth centres and cut library hours.”
• Digital readers are changing the traditional library system – Globe and Mail (Canada).  ““It’s bringing new people to the library because they’re thinking, we’re a library, we have books, we must know how to help them with their e-book readers,” said Christina de Castell, manager of online information and news at VPL. “The library hasn’t seen before the same level of interest that e-books are clearly generating.”
• Do mention the war – Sunday Star Times (New Zealand).  Roy Clare, ex-head of the MLA, is interviewed.  He is proud of his record at the MLA “…And he’s unrepentant about supporting library closures. In fact, Clare thinks the UK’s 1800 museums are too numerous, too”. 
• Karin Slaughter to write short story to benefit libraries – Booktrade.info.  “A long-time advocate for libraries, Slaughter’s organization Save the Libraries (www.savethelibraries.com) has raised over $50,000 for her local DeKalb County Library system and served as a model for other library advocacy groups around the globe. Her efforts have been graciously supported by the International Thriller Writers and numerous fellow writers.”
• Librarians as life consultants, interview with Gene Tan (president of Library Association of Singapore) – This Week in Libraries.
• Libraries thriving not dieing – Deseret News (USA).  “What’s perhaps most surprising, considering the oft-predicted demise of the printed words, is that the number of people visiting libraries keeps rising, said Donna Jones Morris, Utah’s state librarian of seven and a half years.”
• Library Voices wear a literary love on their record sleeves – Ampersand.  “And last year, the band played gigs in rural Saskatchewan libraries: “We had in the back of our heads a mellower version of the set that we could perform, and everyone just wanted balls-out rock ’n’ roll.”

“That, however, was before New Labour went to work on it and decided that books were old hat and that what mattered were computer terminals. Books were not only old-fashioned and complicated to manage but smacked of elitism. So the book sections were downsized and the vacated space filled up with computers. This policy overlooked the fact that all over the developing world, internet cafés are as common as grocery stores. Lending libraries, on the other hand, especially ones with English books in them, are as rare as unicorns.” Peter Popham: A sad case of the wrong address – Independent.   

• Reads and the Read-Nots – National Literacy Trust.  “New National Literacy Trust research of 18,141 children reveals a polarised nation of young readers with 1 in 6 reporting that they don’t read a single book in a month, while 1 in 10 say they read more than 10 books in a month. This divide between the “reads” and the “read-nots” is concerning because the research shows reading frequency has a direct link to attainment, as 8 in 10 children who read over 10 books a month are above average readers compared to just 3 in 10 of those who rarely read.”
• Slaughter writes digital-only story to benefit libraries – BookSeller.  “Slaughter said: “Librarians have always stood up for writers and readers in every kind of community across this country. The demand for their programs and services is increasing while their budgets are decreasing. It’s time that we stood up for them.”

Changes

• Croydon – Campaign group: Croydonlibraries.org.
• Lambeth – Consultation until 16th September. Campaign group: Save Lambeth Libraries  #SaveLambthLibs

Local News

• Croydon – Referendum: the future of Croydon libraries – Croydonlibraries.org.  “Croydon’s Conservative Council have rejected community calls backed by Labour Councillors, to hold an Independent Library review for Croydon to see how our local Libraries can remain locally owned and accountable to local people, instead they have decided to ‘market test’ Croydon’s Library service ahead of a possible privatisation. We want to know what the people of Croydon think so please take a minute and vote in our referendum.”
• Devon – French trip inspired Sparkwell’s  new community library – BBC.  “Sparkwell library will be staffed by volunteers and run from the village’s old school building. It is the fourth community library to open in south Devon and will be supported by the county council.”
• New Sparkwell Library – ITV WestCountry Tonight. “A village in South Devon was devastated when it lost its local school. Now its residents have got together and opened their own library using part of the old school buildings.”
• Durham – Sunday closure for Durham Clayport Library – BBC.   “Maria Plews, Durham County Council’s cabinet member for leisure, libraries and lifelong learning, said: “The average number of people using Clayport Library each Sunday has fallen by more than 70% during the last three years. At a time when we have to make significant savings as a result of the Government grant reductions it is simply not sustainable or sensible for Sunday opening to continue.”
• Edinburgh – Hundreds gather in Sighthill to try to smash world record – STV.   “218 children and adults gathered at Sighthill Library in Gate 55 hoping to smash the current record of 290 readers, set in 2010 in Vienna, Austria.  Under the watchful eye of Guinness World Record adjudicator Claire Burgess, each read one sentence from award-winning Scottish author Theresa Breslin’s book Prisoner in Alcatraz.”… UK record reached … “It was amazing to see all the age range of participants. It was great to see the buggies arriving, then grannies and then young people. A good one for the libraries.”

“In the whole it demonstrates the difficulty local authorities are having in making these cuts so quickly. Ideally, a 40% cut in the libraries service (if necessary) and the development of new models would be done over a 3-5 year period with maximum engagement and involvement of local groups and service users. Proposals would be phased in and models tested. Money would be available during this time to ensure some form of continuity. None of this has happened and it seems the model has been decided by officers and then presented to the public.” Gloucestershire – Libraries, raised tempers and Gloucestershire County Council  – We Love Local Government. 

• Oxfordshire – Villagers invited to discuss future of library – Henley Standard.   “This means volunteers would be needed to maintain the current opening hours but the libraries would be given free use of their buildings, access to the council’s book stock and computer network and professional support from librarians.  So far, the council has received more than 1,000 responses to the consultation, which began at the beginning of June after being delayed four times.”
• Community libraries “can work” – Henley Standard.   “David Silvester said that Buckinghamshire County Council saved 20 per cent of the costs of its library service by handing over 14 of its 23 libraries to communities to run. Oxfordshire County Council is proposing to withdraw two-thirds of staff funding from 16 libraries, including those in Sonning Common, Benson, Woodcote, Watlington and Goring.”
• Suffolk – Town pushing ahead with library pilot bid – EADT.   “All I can say at the moment is that we did meet with council officers on Thursday and the process for discussing the start-up of the Aldeburgh pilot next April has begun but there’s lots more detailed discussion to be had.”
• Wigan – Plan for libraries go ahead – Wigan Today.   “The council and its partners in Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust, who manage the library service, need to find £1.1m in savings from the library budget following government cuts…” Cuts to library service pushed through council “..Despite 40 or so people protesting at the meeting, councillors said they thought the plans were the right thing to do.”