Libraries inspire

Libraries Inspire
Dr Alyson Tyler
Libraries Development Adviser
CyMAL: Museums Archives and Libraries Wales
@libalyson
Image of the Bibli family – promoting libraries in Wales www.thebiblis.com

Outline of talk
Wales context
Libraries for Life
Libraries Inspire overview
Collaboration examples

What is CyMAL: Museums Archives and Libraries Wales?
Policy division of Welsh Government
30 staff (7 vacant posts)
Cross-domain approach
Government building in Aberystwyth

CyMAL’s roles and activities
Advise the Minister
Develop policy
Deliver grant programmes
Provide advice and support for sector
Provide free training programme
Networking
Research
Publish magazine
Sponsorship on National Library and National Museum

Wales context
3 million people
20% speak Welsh
22 local authority library services
1 National Library
c.12 HE libraries (mergers ongoing)
c.23 FE libraries (mergers ongoing)
50+ health libraries
5 Prison libraries
? School libraries
? Workplace libraries
Image from Flickr - giveawayboy

Welsh libraries in statistics (public)
Over 14.7 million visits 2009/10 (up 5.4% from 2008/09)
Active borrowers rose to 681,000 (up 5.6% on 2008/09)
Over 14.4 million books borrowed 2009/10
Over 980,000 audio-visual loans in 2009/10
Over 2 million enquiries were handled by public libraries in 2009/10
Figures from the CIPFA (Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy) Public Library Actuals survey for 2009-10.

Welsh libraries in statistics 2 (public)
330+ public libraries service points in Wales open 10 hours a week or more
Over 2800 terminals with free internet access Over 2 million hours of free computer use in libraries made
Swansea Central and Cardiff Central libraries are in the top 10 UK libraries for most items issued to borrowers for 2009/10.
Figures from the CIPFA (Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy) Public Library Actuals survey for 2009-10.

Library strategies in Wales
2005-07 @ your library
2007-08 Interim year
2008-11Libraries for Life
2011-12 planning/interim year
2012-15/16 Libraries Inspire (proposed)

Libraries for Life 2008-2011 (six works strands)
Community Learning Libraries Programme
Online content and resources
Regional Library Partnerships framework
National marketing strategy
Developing workforce skills
Welsh Public Libraries Standards Framework 3
BBC Wales weatherman and Welsh rapper in Fancy That library event

Libraries Inspire Framework – the planning process
Internal planning process started in 2010
External consultation process
Revisions and discussions summer 2011
Launch autumn 2011
Annual Delivery Plan – in partnership

The Vision – Libraries Inspire
“Libraries in Wales will work together to inspire people to enjoy reading, improve their knowledge, develop their skills and participate in their respective communities. Library services will be responsive to meeting people’s changing needs in a local, safe, modern physical and virtual environment.”

Libraries Inspire – core offer

Libraries Inspire themes / work areas
Sustainable models of service delivery
Resources for all
Space for all
Skills for life
A helping hand
Attracting the audience
Delivering a quality service

Collaboration or combat?
Builth Wells Historical Pageant 1909,
from LLGC flickr stream,

Collaboration examples from Welsh libraries
Online resources
Joint purchase of online material – national offer
Cat Cymru & regional resource delivery
Library portal www.library.wales.org
E-books pilot (14 local authorities)
Marketing – e.g. national campaigns
Welsh information literacy project http://www.library.wales.org/informationliteracy/
Regional framework (eg training – cross sector)
Joint LMS – initial work

Resource discovery – Cat Cymru
freeimages.co.uk

Cat Cymru – library.wales.org
Cat Cymru screen shot

Cat Cymru search results

Resource delivery - regional ILL delivery schemes
Image from flickr

Benefits of resource collaboration
Improved service for users
Useful in times of financial hardship
Helps public libraries meet some of the Welsh Public Library Standards
Staff get to know each other across all libraries
May lead to greater collaboration on collection management

Challenges of resource collaboration
Geography
Bugs in Cat Cymru
Differences in indexing & cataloguing
Reticence to promote – fear of flood of requests
Net borrowers and net lenders
Still slower than other options? Two tier system?
Changes in LMS currently taking months to resolve in Webfeat
Who pays for the delivery if/when funding runs out?
Costs/charges vary across regions and Wales and sectors
Not helped cross-regional borrowing
Cost of postal delivery versions go up if usage goes up
Delivery and logistics

Together

Questions?

Contact details
alyson.tyler@wales.gsi.gov.uk
0300 062 2103
Twitter @libalyson
http://libalyson.wordpress.com
http://libalysoncym.wordpress.com/
(Cymraeg/Welsh)
www.wales.gov.uk/cymal

Libraries inspire

by Scottish Library & Information Council (SLIC), CILIP in Scotland (CILIPS)

Accessibility

Categories

Upload Details

Usage Rights

Statistics

Libraries inspire Presentation Transcript