Downend & Staple Hill Library Users Group minutes

Minutes of Downend & Staple Hill Library Users Group
Monday 17th October 2011, 7.00pm at Staple Hill Library

Present: Cllr Jim Cullimore, Tina Hanks, Anne Newbery, Cllr Graeme Riley, Beryl Bellamy, Margaret Uppington, Annette Norley, Rita Stanleigh, Jeff Brackstone, Michael Duffy, Helen Egarr.

1

Contributions from the public – None

2

Apologies: Rachel Betts, Sue Poole.

The following have decided to stand down as members: Caroline Harcombe, Jim Grant, and Sally Lockwood. Michael will write to thank them in appreciation of their work and support.

Suggestions for raising the Library Users Group’s profile and attracting new members included displaying a short flyer on library computer desks and coffee tables and regularly including a reference to the group in the library article which Helen writes for the Downend Matters newsletter

 3

Report of the Chair

Anne said how as a regular library user she had been very impressed with the wide range of activities and events which both sites had hosted.

It was very satisfying to know that the two libraries are very much part of the community and continue to enjoy a high profile

There has also been change. Self Service has been successfully introduced at Downend and Anne acknowledged how staff had appreciated the help that user group members gave during its introduction.

She was very impressed by the way libraries are supporting informal adult learning and how good it was to see the continuing popularity of the range of IT and basic skills classes which are run and over-subscribed in both libraries. Equally impressive has been the range of children’s activities, from rhyme times, children’s book clubs, craft activities and a full programme of holiday activities, culminating in the Summer Reading Challenge, which continue to be hugely popular in both libraries, as do the adult reading groups.

The way in which libraries are used out of normal library hours, with brass bands, ante-natal classes and a wide range of other groups meeting in them, demonstrates yet again that libraries are an essential hub of the community.

Anne went on to remind members of the Group’s role in helping to protect all of this - there is a real need now for the Library User Group to be a strong voice campaigning in support of libraries as the threat of cuts looms large.

In conclusion Anne thanked the staff for all their hard work and thanked the Group for the support it had given her.

4

Election of officers

a) Chair: Anne – proposed by Jim and seconded by Margaret

b) Vice chair: Rita – proposed by Graeme and seconded by Jim

Minutes of the Meeting of the 27 July 2011

Matters Arising

Librarian’s Report

Members were interested to hear of the wide variety of events, which both libraries had hosted. This year’s Summer Reading Challenge, Circus Stars, had proved a great success and had once again benefited from the support of volunteers, who were able to spend quality time with the youngsters sharing and discussing the books which they had read. Helen also drew attention to the current Active Mind Month programme of events, which is proving a great success

Quarterly statistics

Members were encouraged to see that issues and use at Staple Hill remain buoyant, but expressed concern that at Downend use had dropped. Several reasons were suggested for this:

· Downend is off the beaten track, some distance from the main thoroughfare and shops

· Competition from other outlets such as supermarkets, where paperbacks can be purchased at knock down prices as part of the weekly shop. Perhaps there is too much on offer; customers can’t always see the wood for the trees

· Jim pointed out that statistics can of course be misleading, with percentage changes slightly distorting the true picture

E-books are also gaining in popularity, as evidenced by the Sunday Times article, which Anne circulated. Clearly libraries will need to move with these developments and offer them alongside the conventional book. Graeme likened the situation to that faced by cinemas, which had to adapt to meet customer expectations.

Services will increasingly be provided online and the library, whilst still being the focal point of the community, will move towards a “gate keeping” role.

Members wondered whether the self service kiosks might prove a barrier to some customers, whose perception is that contact and engagement with staff is lost. On the other hand, others really appreciate the autonomy that self service affords. Members hoped that all the flexibility of Open Galaxy would in due course be accessible through the kiosks.

More targeted marketing of the service was needed to counteract outdated perceptions of library stock. Libraries should market “choice” both in terms of range of stock and the ability to tailor services to one’s individual needs. Helen said that improvements in the LibrariesWest website and in the online catalogue should help in this regard, giving the reader an online experience similar to, for instance, visiting the Amazon website.

DVDS are quite expensive to borrow. Would cheaper hire with quicker turnaround generate more loans, or offers similar to BOGOF, namely borrow one, get one free?

Anne suggested that the introduction of loyalty cards might pay dividends.

Agreed that Helen and Tina organise more class visits

Michael thanked members for these constructive observations and suggestions, which would be further explored.

Library staffing review and organisation of Library User Groups

A review of back office and management functions has recently been carried out and scope for rationalisation identified. Whilst overall, in comparison with other similar sized authorities, staffing across the Council is not especially high, South Gloucestershire does however have quite a high level of management posts, which following the review have been reduced by 30%. As part of this, over 120 hours have been taken from librarian posts. As a result more libraries will share a librarian:

Kingswood with Hanham

Bradley Stoke with Winterbourne.

Downend and Staple Hill remain the same as regards the librarian post, but the Senior Library Assistant post at Downend has been formalised at 27 hours, following the holder’s decision to reduce her hours.

Yate, Chipping Sodbury and the mobile group remain the same, apart from a part time librarian post being deleted. 18.5 hours of a job-share librarian post in Library Support Services has also been deleted.

These posts are not “back office” per se, as they fulfil some frontline duties and the reduction in hours will inevitably impact on service, although opening hours have not so far been affected.

Wendy Nicholls the Children’s and Young Person’s librarian has decided to retire. Her post was not deleted and Emma Fisher, the librarian at Hanham whose post was deleted, has transferred into the children’s librarian post.

At management level both of the Library Team Manager posts have been deleted and replaced with one post of “Operations Manager” which will be filled by John Abraham. Michael has opted for voluntary redundancy. Members were sorry to hear this news. Jim thanked Michael for all his hard work and enthusiasm; Graeme added that Michael would be a great loss to the service - sentiments echoed by all present.

Michael said it had been a pleasure to work for the authority and how much he had appreciated the friendship of colleagues and library user group members. John will take over responsibility for the user groups, which may well be reorganised to mirror library groupings. Frequency of meetings will also be reviewed.

A wider review of the service will shortly be implemented, as part of the authority’s need to make substantial further savings. Members feared that it was hard to see how this will not have a negative impact on opening hours. Nationally, proposed library closures have proved an emotive issue, with injunctions taken against authorities and High Court rulings awaited on decisions made to close libraries by at least two authorities. Anne again emphasised to members the importance of local support in campaigning against any proposed cuts

Results from the Self Service survey

Findings from the survey were circulated. For the most part comments reflected a positive response, a view endorsed by the meeting. Respondents particularly appreciated the high visibility option and the novelty screens for the youngsters. Several comments reflected the wish for loans history to be available. Some users regretted the potential for loss of staff interaction. We overcome this by aiming to always have staff in the vicinity of the kiosks. Anne suggested that more sharing of book reviews was needed to encourage users to broaden their reading – using “Post its” perhaps to write mini reviews. Book chains are another fun way to generate interest.

Jeff was concerned that if a receipt was mislaid, he wouldn’t know the return date. Customers are of course very welcome to write in the due date on the date label, which prior to the self service would have been stamped by staff.

From the staff’s point of view the dates stamped on the date labels were an effective way to gauge how frequently individual titles were borrowed. It is hoped that a portable device will shortly be available to scan the shelves and collect this data electronically. 

AOB

Prior to the meeting, Shirley had raised with Martin her concerns as to the impact on staff of self service and the use of volunteers. Martin had clarified as follows:

Self Service: This was introduced at Staple Hill Library and no reduction in staff was made. It did allow us to manage the significant increased usage without a corresponding increase in level of staff

At Downend Library (as was also the case at Bradley Stoke and Emersons Green Libraries) we wanted to see if its introduction would allow us to operate libraries at a reduced staffing level without impacting on service delivery and quality. The recent survey shows that there were no major concerns from customers. Self Service has helped to reduce our costs and maintain the service. Trained staff are still vital to the service and are available to help users gain the most from their visit.

Volunteers: We use volunteers at present to bring added value and enhance service provision. Volunteers in the Summer Reading Challenge enable children to talk about books at length and share their enthusiasm. Having young people as volunteers helps them develop interpersonal skills and confidence. We also use volunteers to deliver books to home library users and to support people with IT where they need someone who has time and patience to guide them through making use of IT.

Forthcoming events:

· Quiz Night - Staple Hill, Wednesday 16 November

· Christmas on the Hill, Saturday 10 December – if anyone would like to help with the stand outside the library please contact Helen.

Dates of Future Meetings in 2012

Thursday 19 January: Downend

Monday 16 April: Staple Hill

Meetings start at 7.00pm