A mixed bag today.  The final echoes of National Libraries Day are fading away. The Government is perhaps trying to keep the feel-good vibes going a little longer by announcing £600k of funding per year (half by DCLG, half by ACE and BL) to  encourage libraries to provide intellectual property service for businesses.  It’s a shame, as I have seen pointed out, that all of the authorities involved (including the perhaps slightly reprieved Newcastle) are also having to otherwise drastically cut their library budgets but the initiative itself is promising.

Locally, there’s a real mix in fortunes.  On the negative side, Wrexham may close a quarter of its libraries and nearly halve its number of public computers.  On the balance (depending on how one feels about private companies taking over libraries – I imagine most readers of this blog would be very much against) Ealing appears to be outsourcing its libraries and has cut down its bidders to two,  More positively, it looks like Northumberland is bucking the trend (at least in terms of visits and members) by a rqnge of measures that could bear further examination.

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A media double-whammy today as the media had the National Libraries Day story to run with as well as the release of the Public Lending Right figures.  The two in combination probably meant public libraries had more national media coverage today than at any point in the last year.

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In a welcome spirit of open-ness, the minutes of the SCL (Society of Chief Librarians) Executive Committee meeting held in CILIP on 23rd January 2013 are now available publicly online.  This is part of a conscious spirit of engagement on the part of senior library managers to engage with public library campaigners and, presumably, also with rank and file library staff.  It leads on from its welcome “Universal Offers” announced last week and continues with an announcement in the minutes  that it is reviewing its core purpose and governance.

The main points include a sneak preview of the results of the ACE research and an insight into SCL meetings with politicians:7

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Despite all the bad news and the inherent danger in sounding like the Government who says that libraries are “not in crisis”, it is worth looking at the more positive side of things.  It will do all a disservice just to concentrate on the bad and a portrait that just shows one side of a face is either a Picasso or unfinished.  So what’s good?  Well, I’ll concentrate on two things. I’m already noticing a lot more National Libraries Day stuff than I can remember seeing last year.  A lot of councils are getting on board and sending press releases out.  The best of the bunch so far, of course, is Midlothian whose pole-fitness sessions have – and I can’t think why – appeared to have grabbed the imagination of much of the national media.

Another positive thing is that, like a quiet counterpoint to the loud orchestral crash of libraries closing, there are some libraries opening or being refurbished.  My list (itself an amalgam of information supplied by the DCMS, SCL and many authorities/interested onlookers) has been used as one of the sources for a listing by Designing Libraries which comes the closest yet to something that can claim to be comprehensive.  They count 135 new or refurbished library buildings open or committed to since the start of 2011.  That’s less than half the number of libraries which closed or were “volunteered” in the same period – and 40% were co-locations (which may or may not be a bad thing, depending on how it’s done) – but it’s better than nothing.  And, yes, a lot of these have been “committed to” but not yet built but. come on, it’s still good news.

Along with the Universal Offers last week, there’s some hope for public libraries over the last week or so.  Long may it continue.  However, if the bosses at the DCMS are foolish enough to pretend that this means somehow all is well in libraries then they will be lampooned again, as they were in the comments of the BookSeller:

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Fresh from the Universal Offers launch, another important bit of library news comes along today with the Government’s reponse to the Select Committee Inquiry into Library Closures.  Turns out they’ve seen the error of their ways and will order direct interventions in ten authorities on Monday.  Only kidding.  To the surprise of no-one, it’s clear they see themselves as facilitators and spreaders of best practice only. A summary of their response is below with the CILIP view presented with gusto, as always, by President Phil below.

In other news, Cardiff and Swindon look set to cut opening hours and Coventry Central is having a refurbishment.  The Universal Offer (well, OK, Books on Prescription), by the way, was all of the Guardian page three today – which is a very impressive showing, as are the 340 plus comments on the corresponding webpage.

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