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| PUBLIC CONSULTATION ARISING FROM THE PROPOSAL TO MAKE CHANGES IN LIBRARY PROVISION IN THE COOKSTOWN/MONEYMORE AND LURGAN/WARINGSTOWN AREAS |
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| In the last few years it has become increasingly difficult to find enough money for books as well as provide enough staff to keep libraries open. As a result we have had to close libraries for various periods at short notice because it was not possible to pay for additional staff hours to cover periods of staff sickness.
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| Over the past 10 years loans have fallen by 52% from 2,712,020 to 1,317,350. During the same period spending on stock continued to fall, because of lack of funds reaching an all-time low in 2004-2005. |
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| A survey took place in March 2006 to ask for the views of the public on library provision; over 5,000 people responded. The main findings were that 60% of users still thought that books were the most important thing; many people prefer weekdays to Saturdays and few seem to want Sunday opening; and many more people wanted afternoon and evening opening rather than mornings.
Over the last 2 years the government has told library services that they must spend more money on books. There is no doubt that many years of low spending on stock have played a big part in the decline in book borrowing.
The Library Service has tried to find other savings in order to spend more money on books. Since April 2005 more money has been found, mostly from staff costs but none from front line branch library services.
We have to find more money to buy new books and also to ensure that all libraries are open when they should be. We want to guarantee a good range and standard of service in all our libraries within the budget limits. We need to make changes to library opening hours to get a better match to what customers are asking for and to spend more on books. The changes would mean replacing the two part-time libraries in Moneymore and Waringstown with mobile library services and providing 4 late evenings a week instead of 2 in Cookstown and Lurgan. These changes will help the process of meeting the demand for more new books and more evening opening by using our funds and staff more effectively.
The attached paper sets out the proposal to close Moneymore and Waringstown Libraries replacing them with Mobile Library Services, allowing an increase in evening opening in Cookstown and Lurgan, from 2 evenings per week to 4 evenings per week.
In order that the Board might effectively screen this proposal for equality implications we would welcome your views on this proposal. We very much appreciate your contribution to this process.
Your comments on the questionnaire will inform the screening process which assesses adverse impact in term of equality implications.
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