Memorandum submitted by Manchester City
Council
INTRODUCTION
1. Manchester City Council welcomes the
opportunity to contribute to the Culture, Media and Sport Committee
Inquiry into the Government's policy on Public Libraries.
2. Manchester Libraries and Information
Service is engaged in a transformational change programme which
responds to Government policy articulated through Framework for
the Future; to City Council Objectives and Shared Priorities;
changing expectations of service users and local communities.
3. We are therefore engaged in fundamentally
changing the organisational structure for the delivery of Library
and Information Services, advancing critical service improvement
objectives whilst embracing the changing role for libraries as
a deliverer of key council E-government targets and objectives.
4. We support the response forwarded to
the Committee by the Society of Chief Librarians (SCL), recognising
that this and other national organisations will focus on the national
strategic and policy framework for public library services.
5. The purpose of this response is to contribute
specific examples of activity and development of the library services
within Manchester, along with some of the challenges.
E-GOVERNMENT
6. The Peoples Network greatly enhanced
the provision of free internet access throughout all 24 Libraries
and the mobile service in Manchester. This now supports the development
of "Libraries as Access Points", one of nine City Council
e-government Pathfinder Programmes which test and advance our
corporate e-government targets and objectives.
7. Through the "Access Points"
in Libraries, Manchester residents can access a wide range of
council and other public services on-line. In one library in October,
residents accessed 1,050 separate council services via the internet
increased from a baseline of 50 (March 2004). The Library environment
provides a welcoming, convenient, locally accessible service with
staff trained to support residents with their enquiries, overcome
inexperience and give confidence to utilising the internet.
8. We have developed a major staff training
programme to support the introduction of the "Access points"
which underpins the important cultural change programme underway
across the service. This is a customer-centric training programme,
supported by a range of Council services eg Housing, Benefits,
Environmental Services staff. Early outcomes include significant
service improvements at a local level, major appreciation of the
changing role of libraries by Council Members and service providers,
with a very positive response from, as well as raised expectations
of, customers.
9. Manchester Libraries now provide a 24
hour library service whereby residents can not only reserve and
renew on-line, but can access a wide range of reference and other
web-based material. Our "Local Images" collections launched
on-line in September, with over 77,000 local images of the City
going back to the eighteenth century has recorded over 45,000
visits (not hits) in September 2004 alone, rising to 58,000 in
October.
10. We are therefore disappointed that the
recent "new" Public Library Service Standards did not
include "virtual visits" to the Library.
11. Whilst embracing the leading role within
the City Council's e-government programme, the library service's
key to future success is the sustainability of the ICT infrastructure.
For Manchester, this means securing additional funding of £80,000
per year (a five year £1-2 million replacement programme).
Given the significant budget pressures and major service requirements
within the City Council, this represents a serious challenge.
Moreover, it is difficult to demonstrate value for money in accesses
to e-government services through libraries (in line with Gershon
priorities) whilst a measure for this does not exist.
BUILDINGS
12. Capital investment has been secured
through several key partnerships for major refurbishments in four
libraries over the last 12-18 months, totalling £5 million,
but the majority of the library buildings urgently require modernisation
and refurbishment and must compete with significant other demands
from the Social Services, Education and Civic "estate".
13. We are developing a Forward Investment
Strategy for Libraries which proposes new models of library provision
through Joint Service Centres, engaging with the Building Schools
for the Future initiative and the Children's Centre agenda. Whilst
also engaged in the procurement of a Joint Service Centre through
the PFI/LIFT process, there are a range of challenges emerging,
not least about Value for Money, the complexity of the process
and safeguarding a user focus throughout the development.
ROLE OF
CITY/REGIONAL
LIBRARIES
14. Our Central Library is a Grade II listed
building built in 1934 with a wide range of specialist services
and unique collections. We have embarked on an ambitious programme
to review the utilisation of space within the building, ensuring
compliance with DDA requirements and the Council's Design for
Access Standards. This work will also refocus the services to
move away from a "mainly" reference to a more logical
mix of lending and reference, whilst safeguarding special collections,
maximising the utilisation of ICT, a wide range of cultural activities,
business, research and uniquely the Library Theatre Company.
15. We have taken away all barriers to the
widest possible use of our Central Library, in particular by removing
a charge to non-Manchester residents, but there remains no additional
funding in recognition of its role within Greater Manchester and
the wider North West Region. We strongly support the idea that
libraries of regional significance should receive additional budget
support nationally.
SHARED PRIORITIES
16. An important driver for change in Manchester
Libraries has been a clear commitment to support and directly
contribute to City Council objectives and shared priorities, in
particular:
— services to children and educational
attainment;
— basic skills and employment opportunities;
— regeneration and sustainable communities;
and
17. Some examples include:
— Homework Centres: There are currently
seven Homework Centres based in libraries in key regeneration
areas. Last year the centres served over 25,000 young people.
The most critical objective of the centres is to raise educational
attainment, particularly in those areas with significant challenges
to reach national averages. Over the last three years, these centres
have developed with external funding (SRB/Children's Fund/EAZ/NRF)
but the library service requires mainstream funding of £320,000
if this core service is to continue.
— ICT Facilitators in Libraries: another
externally funded core service in our libraries is provided by
ICT facilitators who provide a one to one service to adults requiring
support and assistance with PCs, internet access and a range of
ICT applications. Recognising the key contribution that this library
service makes to basic skills, first steps to learning and access
to employment, the Learning and Skills Council has funded the
service (£750,000) until December 2005.
— Powerhouse: a library specifically
for young people, where they participate in stock selection and
the running of the facility. Specific skills are required and
careful selection of staff provides an important service which
has been case studied in "Fulfilling their Potential"
— Health Information Points: over the
course of 2004-05, we will roll-out Health Information Points
throughout all Manchester libraries, having successfully piloted
this in collaboration with local Primary Care Trusts, the NHS
Agency and a variety of other partners funded through Neighbourhood
Renewal Funds. They make a fundamental contribution to provision
of health information in the City, which is a health priority,
and will become a focal point for partner activities with communities,
such as, the 5-a-day, cancer awareness and smoking cessation campaigns.
— The Libraries as Access Points Service
mentioned above (para 6-8) underpins the Libraries' role and contribution
to sustaining communities. Increasingly Library personnel are
invited to a whole range of regeneration planning activity.
18. Over the last five years, Manchester
Library and Information Service has secured almost £9m external
funding for services which are now regarded as core services in
Framework for the Future. Our ability to absorb these services
into the mainstream presents one of our biggest challenges. Failure
to tackle this key challenge will seriously damage the impact
envisaged within Framework for the Future.
19. These core services referred to above
cannot be measured against the current PLSS and we therefore look
forward to the introduction of Impact Standards to enable us to
clearly demonstrate our wider contribution to shared priorities
and government objectives.
LEGISLATIVE AND
STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK
20. Whilst recognising the responsibility
of DCMS for Library services, there are a range of Government
and Strategic bodies who are involved in shaping the agenda for
Libraries. Communication and clarity of purpose between these
agencies, for example between DCMS, DfES and MLA appears poor,
in respect of the learning agenda particularly in relation to
leadership of the sector.
21. At a local level, within the Manchester
Library Service, a key priority, in order to support and advance
the new role for libraries, is strong leadership and management
and a wholesale cultural change programme, which has involved
a complete service restructure, a comprehensive staff development
programme and a communication strategy underpinned by a performance
improvement framework.
22. This has introduced a change in focus
for front-line staff locally and a recognition that traditional
skills and values need to change. Early results indicate that
where priority is given to service improvement and where investment
is made in the infrastructure and the staff, the outcomes across
a range of key indicators are dramatic.
eg in Wythenshawe, the Forum Library re-opened
in June 2004 after a major £1.5 million refurbishment:
— Averaging 6,000 visitors per week,
we project 340,000 visits over the year—120,000 more than
last year.
— We have 100 new members signing up
each week with 4,500 projected for the year, double from last
year.
— We projected that we would have 25,000
people using the public access PCs over a year, but now expect
this to be 42,000.
— Now open four hours on a Sunday with
an average of 400 visits a day.
SUMMARY
23. We believe that we are making good progress
in year 2 of a major change programme and have provided examples
of activity which illustrate key aspects of the library service
in Manchester as well as areas being developed.
— Our response demonstrates that investment
in the library infrastructure, including ICT provision, is critical
to the future of the service and that where this has occurred,
the evidence shows that the public's use of local libraries increases.
— A significant level of additional
external funding has underpinned the development of core services
and there is a requirement to bring these services into the mainstream
revenue funded service offer.
— The new model of provision, particularly
through the development of Joint Service Centres and the "Libraries
as Access points" programme make a major contribution to
social inclusion, There is a growing and valued recognition of
the library at the heart of the community.
— The skills and knowledge of library
staff are now being developed which build on existing skills and
enhance people skills and customer centric services. Training
agencies need to recognise these changes and further investment
in widespread cultural change programmes will underpin the range
of new roles for libraries.
— City or Central Libraries which provide
a regional service should secure additional level of national
funding to preserve and enhance their wider role.
24. We are very willing to give evidence
to Committee or to provide further detail about any of the points
contained in the submission.
12 November 2004
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