MPs demand urgent action on libraries
The UK’s libraries are in need of urgent attention if the decline in visitor numbers, lending figures and the quality of the buildings is to be reversed.
That is the conclusion of the Commons Culture Media and Sport Select Committee, which calls on the Department for Culture Media and Sport to “raise its game” and act “far more effectively as a champion and advocate for libraries across Government”.
The committee strongly comes out in support of the public library system, describing it as an “important national resource with a vital role to play in establishing, nurturing and nourishing people’s love of reading.” It also points out they have a vital role to play in lifelong and informal learning and are a “trusted civic amenity-highly valued, safe public spaces and storehouses of advice, information and knowledge-without which the citizens of Britain would be very much the poorer.”
The decision of the DCMS to assess libraries against 10 national standards is welcomed, but the committee says that the standards are “rather limited ambitions which, even so, are not being fulfilled.”
It points out that they do not include access for people with disabilities, extended opening hours, book loans or internet access.
It warns that although there are pockets of excellence across the country, overall performance is falling whilst costs are rising – a “signal of a service in distress”.
The MPs call for closer attention on libraries’ fundamental role in promoting reading, with a reallocation of funds to core areas, and an action plan for the refurbishment of the nation’s library buildings. It estimates that this will cost between £240 million and £650 million and calls on the Government to be clear where the resources will come from.
Sir Gerald Kaufman, committee chairman, said: “Urgent action is required from those responsible for the service to reverse the decline in visitors, lending figures and the fabric of the library estate. Our recommendations focus on libraries’ role in the promotion of reading and the need for effective mechanisms to ensure all public libraries across the country reach the very high standards expected of them by the public.”
