National Libraries Day looms! 4th February 2012

Save Croydon Libraries Campaign has received the following message from Voices for the Library, which we share here.

"As you are obviously aware, February 4th 2012 marks the very first National Libraries Day - an opportunity to celebrate the important contribution public libraries make to our society.  Whilst the day is about celebration, it is also about highlighting the extent to which our public library service is being destroyed by short-sighted and undemocratic policies.

In light of this, we would like to highlight and promote the protest actions that are going to be taking place up and down the country.  We have created a Facebook group to enable people to add details of any protest actions here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/348014265210194/ and people can add details of any protest action here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/348014265210194/docs/

 If you are not on Facebook, please email us with details of any protest actions that are taking place to that we can share them with our supporters and raise awareness of what is happening across the country.

Please pass this information on to as many people as possible. 

Best wishes and all the best for National Libraries Day,

Ian Clark
Voices for the Library"

So what is happening in Croydon?  Er, NOTHING, as far as we can ascertain. Despite a string of organisations supporting National Libraries Day, including CILIP, The Society of Chief Librarians, The Reading Agency, Campaign for the Book, Voices for the Library, the Library Campaign, National Literacy Trust...the list goes on...Croydon Council library service has not replied to enquiries from residents on the subject and we are told that library staff say they know nothing of National Libraries Day.

Authorities who really care about their library service are actively promoting this event in their libraries on council websites, via facebook and on twitter. You can view all the ways authorities are celebrating libraries on the day - some innovative, some very simple, but all showing a commitment to promoting libraries, by clicking on the interactive map here.

For example:

Portsmouth Council is holding an amnesty on late fees, advertised on their website. Details are here, reproduced below.

Sheffield Council are on board, offering a range of special events. 

Northamptonshire Council is teaming up with the a local branch of the WI to promote the event. 

Others tweet to spread the word.

But back to Croydon, Croydon Council is not doing anything to promote the day and as a campaign group we don't propose to organise anything officially.

Why? 

Last year residents in Sanderstead tried to organise a walk to the library and Read -In but plans were thwarted when they met with the most remarkable amount of red tape and extremely unreasonable demands being placed on them by the local authority, should the event proceed.

But we will not be dissuaded from celebrating our much loved library service, and in so doing, showing appreciation for the staff who are working under increasingly difficult circumstances in our libraries. So, again, we suggest residents decide for themselves how they wish to mark the day. You might like to:

• Spread the word about why we should all love our libraries. Why not tweet using  #NLD12 ‘I love my library because…’ You can follow us on twitter at @SaveSanderstead and @SaveCroydonLibs. Copy us in and we will retweet you!  There is also an active @SaveUNLibrary group for Upper Norwood
• Join our  facebook group and add a comment if you like, or just keep up to date with the latest news.  
• Join the library! We know many rely on family members to borrow books for others. Get your own card and show your support! A library card is the passport to a whole new world in your library and on line.  
• Voice your support for Croydon libraries and our remaining libraries staff by email or in person.  Please CC or BCC us in at soslibrary@hotmail.co.uk! Again we will use the text but not your email details. 
• The simple act of entering a library affects footfall figures.  Visit your library, if only to show the staff on duty how much we value them and our libraries!
• Send a comment, as you would wish it to appear, in support of Croydon Libraries, to soslibrary@hotmail.co.uk. Please 'sign' the comment. We will not disclose your email, just the post. We will accept posts from individuals (please including your name as you would wish it to appear e.g.
  

  A.K.Berty

  a  library supporter

  Jamal, 5 years

  Upper Norwood Library Campaign

  or simply add your comment to this post, using the above criteria please.
  
  

  

Just click on Name/URL tab in the drop down, if you do not have access to other profile options.  You do not need to provide a URL for this option to work, Just enter the name you wish to appear.


Send us your own ideas.  We'll be happy to add them.

And, should you wish to write, paint, draw or photograph something to celebrate Croydon libraries please share them with us!

Image thanks to Phil Bradley -  http://bit.ly/xjuTRI

Lies, damn lies and statistics... A working model?

An article by campaign group Voices for the Library is particularly relevant to Croydon Libraries.  You can access the article in full here.

It outlines how statistics can be used to inform decisions taken by a council and how some councils are

"willing and able to manipulate the statistics where required to tip the odds in their favour..".  

The article goes on to demonstrate how the provision of activities in libraries and their effective promotion draws people in, which has a positive impact on the visits.

This is particularly relevant for Croydon as we've already covered the decline in service, lack of promotion of activities and other difficulties experienced in Sanderstead Library here and  here.  We know that Sanderstead is not alone in this either.

The article makes one key point in relation to the the lack of promotion of activities and limiting the nature and scope of activities on offer, which they state is all the more disturbing when set against the backdrop of the 1964 Libraries Act.  

"The Act clearly states:

“It shall be the duty of every library authority to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service for all persons desiring to make use thereof…. of encouraging both adults and children to make full use of the library service.” [emphasis mine]

If library authorities are not promoting activities or events within your library network, they are not ‘encouraging’ adults and children to make full use of the library.  Encouraging people to use the library requires promotional activity and this is fundamental to the delivery of a comprehensive and efficient library service."

Croydon has already experienced this decline in the breadth of activities on offer and in the promotion of its activities.  Calls to have events better advertised have been ignored so far.  Wrong or incomplete information is in circulation.


Here are just a few examples:

Thank goodness Croydon adults were not queuing up to learn to play board games listed such as Battleships. Cancelled event as the board games did not turn up on the day but there was still the chance to enter the Great Croydon Quiz competition to win the grand prize - a free DVD rental!  WOW!...enticing!

No dates and wrong time advertised - In a matter of months the waiting list for the oversubscribed Chatterbooks group is exhausted and the group is run with only a handful of children in attendance.  Children in the library only minutes before the event started not told of the event. 

Possible to provide date and time details, but only in some libraries, apparently? No hidden agenda here.  Look away now!

CLOSED! The welcome greeting offered to library users on more than one occasion since the 'Internal Reshuffle' aka 'drastic loss of  librarians and experienced staff' when the library could not open for two reasons: Only one staff member and no key to access the building! 

Welcome children....If you move to the front of the building and perch on tippy-toes you can look at the books..Enjoy! 

If you wish to follow Voices for the Library find them at:
http://www.voicesforthelibrary.org.uk/wordpress

Croydon libraries under threat of LSSI take over

The truth about the possible fate of Croydon's network of 13 libraries has been revealed in today's Sunday Express article. The Sunday Express writes,

 "The company (LSSI)...believes it can make a profit by redesigning services and cutting costs. It pledges to keep libraries open and shelves stocked but critics claim it will reduce staff and introduce charges"

Campaigners have always maintained that there is no profit in running libraries.  If there are efficiency savings to be made they should be made by the Council itself and used by the Council to work more cost-efficiently.  For a Council who proclaims to have efficiency embedded in their DNA outsourcing is a clear admission of failure to tackle these inefficiencies themselves.

In fact Tim Coates, a national campaigner for Libraries who was the key speaker at Labour's shadow Cabinet meeting on 6th June, has made astonishing claims about the level of inefficiency in the Croydon libraries service. He spoke of the enormous amount spent on libraries in Croydon.  Overheads were currently running at around 40% and should be drastically reduced to around 10%. He went on to explain that Croydon have the highest overhead costs not only in London but in the whole of the country, and then went on to speculate – possibly the highest in the world.

The Sunday Express article goes on to detail that, 

"...LSSI has faced public outcry and lawsuits in the US over claims that experienced staff have lost their jobs and traditionally free library services have attracted charges. While Mr Fitzgerald (LSSI's UK vice-president) denies charges had ever been introduced on free services and insists staff working terms and conditions would be respected, with savings coming from best practice and economies of scale, opponents say it is “ridiculous” to hand over a public asset to a profit-making company which has a balance sheet as its prime concern."

Croydon library campaigners are already aware of these concerns. As Ian Anstice, a member of Voices for the Library, writes on his blog Public Libraries News: 

 "LSSI has been accused of reducing the numbers, pension, terms and conditions of its employees. When taking over a service, LSSI re-employs staff on new contracts. Recent research shows it retains the minimum of qualified library staff. It is worth noting that, for its size, 100 "qualified" staff it promotes as being employed by the company is fairly low when compared to the industry standard. Also, there is the question as to what level these staff are qualified to. It appears that LSSI de-unionises its libraries in the USA."

Croydon Library campaigners and residents have already flagged up the loss of service due to the loss of qualified librarians and highly experienced library staff in a recently undertaken Library Reschuffle,which has also resulted in unqualified staff being 'rebadged' as Reading and Learning Librarians.   

The Express also reports, 

"LSSI, which runs 16 public library systems in five US states, is currently wooing authorities with an attractive business model that promises increased community activity and invites Starbucks to set up inside branches. LSSI has spoken to “dozens of local authorities” over the past three years and held meetings with five councils last week, with Croydon becoming the latest borough to consider a deal. LSSI’s first contract is expected to start next May in Wokingham."

Only this week the Council have denied that they have been in contact with any companies or groups, merely floating the idea of 'market-testing.' A direct question from a member of the public regarding whether the Council had any involvement or approaches from companies such as LSSI was denied by Cllr Sara Bashford, who heads up the libraries consultation. Yet already it is being reported a deal with LSSI is being considered, a deal on the table before the majority of Croydon residents are even aware of the move to 'market-test'.

The Express article goes on to quote Jonathan Hood, a company director who led the Friends of Summertown Library campaign, 

“We have seen the council’s plans off, which is a great triumph for the public, but they will be back. It is all part of this new barbarism where cost is more important than culture. We did have contact from a US action group who said that LSSI’s claims to improve services did not always hold up."

Mr Hood says the campaign to keep libraries public and free had support from all political parties, from “banner-waving Trots to totally blue Tories”.

Croydon Labour offered to set up a cross-party commission on Libraries but this was rejected out of hand by Croydon Conservatives at the Cabinet meeting on Monday 13th June, where they opted for 'market- testing' of the whole network of libraries. Croydon Library campaigners supported this commission and feel sure that the offer of a cross party commission into libraries would have been welcomed by residents they represent.

Learning of dealings with LSSI being made so swiftly will only serve to raise residents' suspicion and concerns in Croydon. 

National Libraries Day announced

The following is taken directly from the Voices for the Library website.  You can access the website here.

A national day to celebrate libraries has been launched and Voices for the Library are proud to support it. National Libraries Day will take place in early February 2012. It will be the finale to a week of events that will celebrate libraries and librarians, and highlight the importance of reading.

Children’s author and libraries campaigner Alan Gibbons announced the launch:

“We are delighted to launch National Libraries Day, a week of events in early February leading to a day of celebration of reading, libraries and librarians around the United Kingdom. A reading child is a successful child. A child who goes to the library is twice as likely to be a good reader and that child becomes a literate adult, a lifelong reader. There are 320 million visits a year to our libraries but we can make them even more popular.

We see National Libraries Day as a positive day of celebration to promote the whole culture of reading for pleasure, information and engagement whether you read your traditional books or on your laptop or e-reader. It is time to make reading a universal culture. We want people to go to their local school or public library and use their School Library Service. Use it. Join it. Love it.”

A group of leading literacy, reading, library and education organisations, including Voices for the Library, met at the Chartered Institute of Library & Information Professionals and agreed to support the day. 

Planning is at an early stage but National Libraries Day activities will include encouraging people to join and use their library, and providing promotional materials and support so local communities can run events such as read-ins, poetry sessions and parties across the country. It is hoped that all sorts of libraries across the country will get involved including public libraries, in schools, colleges and Universities.

“National Libraries Day follows the tremendously successful Save Our Libraries Day, which took place on the 5th February.” said Annie Mauger, CILIP’s Chief Executive, “Save Our Libraries Day was successful because individuals and communities that deeply care about their libraries got out there and made a noise. People love libraries; National Libraries Day will be an amazing opportunity to show how deeply they care.”

You can find  Voices for the Library website here,   on Facebook here at Voices for the Libraries or follow them on Twitter at @UKpling


You might also like to follow us on twitter at  @SandersteadLCG and @SaveSanderstead


Our website also has a wealth of information at www.savesandersteadlibrary.co.uk