June watched the younger man on the stage stand up. He was in his mid-thirties, wearing a pair of chinos and a crisp pink shirt, with a tan that suggested he’d been either on holiday or in a sun bed. He looked like he’d probably not read a book in years, let alone been into a library. Next to him, the woman, Sarah, sat with a smile that didn’t quite meet her eyes. June guessed that she read self-help books.
“Thank you for the introduction, Brian,” Richard said. “It’s great to see so many of you here to talk about the future of Little Whitham Library.”
Sarah let out a small cough and glared at him, but Richard carried on, oblivious of his mistake.
“Now, I won’t beat around the bush. Due to reduced funding from central government and increased financial pressures on the council, we need to cut our libraries budget by thirty percent over the next three years. As such, the council are launching a program of modernization and rationalization of the library service.”
“What’s all that gobbledygook mean?” someone muttered near June.
“We have identified six libraries in the county that we believe are most suitable for restructure. These are Favering, Mawley, Dedham, Little Whitham, Chalcot, and Lave-End. Over the next three months, we’ll be carrying out in-depth analyses of the performance of these libraries in order to ascertain which are providing the council with good value for money.”
“Value for money? It’s a library, not a tin of beans,” said one of the Knit and Natter ladies, and there was a ripple of muted laughter.
“Quiet, please,” Brian said.
Richard continued, unperturbed. “To assist the council in our decision, we’ve contracted a firm of management consultants who will be carrying out this performance analysis on our behalf. They’ll be looking at things like the number of customer visits and the number of books issued. We’ll then be able to work out the cost-effectiveness of each library.”
“How can you put a cost value on all the things the library provides?” June didn’t need to look to know this was Mrs.B speaking. “Literacy, social inclusion, encouraging a love of reading in the young. Do these things have a price, Mr.Donnelly?”
“I said comments at the end,” said Brian. “Now, sit down, Mrs.Bransworth, or I’ll have to ask you to leave.”
Mrs.B let out a loud snort.
“Thank you, Brian,” said Richard. “At the end of the consultation, the council will look at the findings and make our decision about the future of each library. There are three options we’ll be considering. The first is to keep a library open in its current form with no changes. The second is that a library remains open but under community management.”
“What does that mean?” a woman called out.
“It means a local community would take over all responsibilityfor running the library, including leasing the building, the books, and equipment, at no cost to the council.”
“What, like a volunteer library?” Stanley said, and there was a low rumble of muttering round the room. “What would happen to our librarians?”
“Community libraries are staffed by unpaid volunteers,” Richard said.
“Then it’s not a library, is it? It’s just a room full of books.” Mrs.B was standing up again. “A library requires a librarian, with specialist degrees and years of experience. Are you suggesting that someone like me could provide the same service as a trained professional?”
Richard was looking paler under his tan. “Community management isn’t suitable for every library, and so as part of the consultation we’ll be deciding which of the libraries might benefit from this opportunity.”
“What’s the third option?” Vera said.
“The third option is that the library will be closed and replaced by a mobile library service.”
At this there was a clamor of voices.
“Quiet. Quiet!” Brian called, but no one could hear him above the noise.
“If I may?” Sarah stood up with a bright smile and waited for everyone to quieten down, while Richard took his chair again. “Please believe me when I say that we don’t relish having to restructure our libraries. But with the cuts imposed on us by the government, we have to be pragmatic. Library visits are down year on year across the county.”
“Bloody Tories,” Mrs.B said. “We know what you’re up to here, destroying public services with a hundred little cuts so you can bring in privatization and voluntarization.”
Sarah pretended she hadn’t heard this. “Of course, we value feedback from local communities, and we want to listen to what residents have to say. So, we’ll be circulating a questionnaire where you can tell us what you want from your library service. Along with the findings of the consultants, the questionnaires will help us to make a decision about the future of each of the six libraries.”
With that she sat down and whispered something to Richard, who nodded.
“Thank you, Richard and Sarah,” Brian said. “Now, everyone, this is your chance to ask questions. But I warn you—keep this civilized or you’re all out.”
A number of hands shot into the air, but before Brian could pick someone, Vera was standing up.
“How will I renew my bus pass?”
