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Dear colleague,
Delivering planning contributions for public libraries and local authority archive services
I am pleased to announce the publication of a new report, Public Libraries, Archives and New Development: A Standard Charge Approach. This has been prepared for the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) by Martin Elson, Emeritus Professor in Planning at Oxford Brookes University.
The report focuses on developer contributions, sought under section 106 of the 1990 Planning Act, as a source of income in the context of predicted growth. It will help local authorities ensure that the right planning guidance is in place to raise funds for libraries and archives.
This approach is designed to be helpful for any local authority responsible for archive and library services, to help both planners and library and archive staff understand the issues and to provide access to the key ingredients of a successful local planning scheme and to examples of good practice.
This report is based on work on a regional model for a standard charge led by MLA South East since 2006 and it draws on practical experience from a number of authorities who have tested and proved the value of the model. It is illustrated with examples of some approved Supplementary Planning Documents which include requests for public library contributions.
A copy of this report has been sent to all Local Authority Heads of Library Services, Heads of Archive Services, senior planners, and MLA Regional Agencies. A pdf version of the report is available to download from the MLA website:
Hard copies may be ordered from Central Books, following the links on the MLA website at:
http://www.mla.gov.uk/publications/
To help raise the profile of the report and help local authority staff make use of it, MLA will be running a seminar in the autumn of 2008. Please look out for further information about this later this year.
Justin Cavernelis-Frost
Head of Archive Policy
MLA
MLA,
Wellcome
165 Queen's
Gate,
London,
SW7 5HD
020 7273 1477