The Good Library Blog

I doubt whether the report or the press release will have readers giving a whoop of joy; they simply await good book stocks.

The press release is almost unreadable. Typical is the sentence: "This has enabled the MLA to confidently set out clear goals that have won broad support." Split infinitve apart, the adverb makes the sentence overegged. The confidence is apparent in the adjective "clear". The "that" should be "which", unless of course there are other "clear goals" not winning broad support. ("That" - see Fowler - is used to define particular items.) And, typical of so much bureaucratic utterance, there is a lack of anything tangible, visible - such as, er, books, shelves, sign with details of opening hours...

I should say that most news editors will bin the press release (paid for by everybody).

I dont disagree with either James or Amanda (see the discussion on the Conway report, below this item) . I thought I had made it clear in the response that my personal preference has always been to call a spade a spade, and that the word libray is a good one, known by all and understood (world wide). However in today's instant, visual and tele communicating world, a new name may be what is needed to galvanise people. Re what are the people doing when they get into a Discovery Centre, well I guess doing better things than if on the street corners? (in fact what are people doing in a traditional public library setting, well in my experience all sorts of things not related to reading!) What young people do has changed. Reading books is not as popular, it is magazines, DVD, CD, facebook etc, but maybe, and it is early days yet, being in a Discovery Centre will tempt them to experiment with other forms of communication.(they are captive and could be given stimuli etc?) You cant blame Hampshire for trying. if your business or service depends upon an ageing customer base you have to plan for the future? I am concerned about a threat level and that of course needs tackling, and some intervention, and a subtle approach to introducing more literature. But I agree a library was not intended as a community centre, but maybe to survive it now has to be?

I agree with James's point re the brand, but so far we, or the sector and its leaders, have failed. All of them Syrup, MLA, ACL etc.The library brand is dying and no recent flash plans and restructuring appears to be written with a view or an ability to save it.Maybe its time is over?

BB

I don't think there is any evidence anywhere of a decline in the use or popularity of books or reading among teenagers or any group that one would call 'young people'. It is this misreading of evidence that has caused so much wasted effort. Young people want books in public libraries as much as any generation before them. They may want free internet access, too, but that hasn't diminished their appetite for reading from paper.

The counter to BB's argument is to say that if the product isn't working, it is more sensible to fix it than to change its name.

The other point that needs to be made is that both Idea Stores and Discovery Centres have cost an absolute fortune. Tower Hamlets have stopped opening Ideas Stores because both the capital and the revenue costs are exhorbitant. Hampshire have already spent hugely more capital on their Discovery Centre programme than any other authority- and they have still only done two out of fifty four libraries. The effect on their revenue budget has been to cut the book fund and the professional staff. That is the cost of their zeal.

In Hillingdon, use of the libraries, both for visits and book issues, has increased far more than in either of those two. It wasn't the change of name, but the addition of the book stock and other features that the public wanted that made the difference. The new users include people of all ages including 'young people' of all ages. Those developments have been done with a net saving, rather than an increased expenditure.

Why has nobody listened to what Perkins says? Why is a poor little cat who has proved that she knows what to do not worth asking? Why are the Minister and Sir Roy so rude about her? She will tell you that there is no problem with the idea of libraries-- it is the management of them that needs to change, and she will happily show how to do it.

Might it be that the MLA and the DCMS are actually more interested in themselves and their jobs and their self esteem than in the public library service? I think so.