Sieghart has spoken! The long-awaited independent report on England's
public libraries
is out, after sitting on ministers' desks for over two months.
But - so far - the most important bit is missing. The bit where the
government says: "OK, this is what we are going to do..."
Until we see that, library supporters remain in a state of impotent rage.
The report itself is brief and to the point.
The killer quote is: "Two themes have emerged, consistently and dramatically.
"The first was that there have already been far too many library
reviews in recent years which have come to nothing.
"The second was that not enough decision makers at national or local
level appear sufficiently aware of the remarkable and vital value that
a good library service can offer modern communities of every size and
character."
The Library Campaign agrees.
We also welcome the report's insight that library services - despite
heavy cuts and official ignorance - are still widely used and often
offer innovative, impressive services.
But all this is rapidly going down the drain.
On this government's watch (since 2011) over 900 libraries have
already closed or been dumped on to reluctant volunteers to run as
best they can - or are currently threatened with this fate. Countless
others stay "open" but are cutting staff, stock and opening hours.
Sieghart has a good list of what needs doing. Some of it will cost a
little money.
Now we want action.
The Library Campaign: www.librarycampaign.com
CONTACT: Laura Swaffield, 07914 491145
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