Speak up for Libraries - March 13th.
This coming Tuesday (13th March) I will be joining library campaigners from across the country at the Speak up for Libraries rally and lobby of parliament. For the past two years libraries across the country have been victim to disproportionate and savage cuts to their budgets accompanied by a surge in deprofessionalisation as libraries are forced upon communities. There is no doubt about it, public libraries are facing their greatest challenge since the introduction of the 1964 Public Libraries and Museums Act.
So why do I think this is important? I think libraries provide an essential service for many in society. Despite the widespread belief that libraries are no longer relevant due to the arrival and growth of the internet, a substantial proportion of the population do not have access to the internet. For many, the local public library is the only place where they can get online and access the wealth of information that the rest of us take for granted. And it’s not just about access to information. There are substantial economic and educational benefits for those that are connected. From job applications to discounted goods, there are undoubted benefits and opportunities for those less well off in society.
Furthermore, in a world where we are increasingly expected to pay for services that were once accepted as basic human rights, libraries offer a final bulwark against attempts to monetise information. There is no charge for access to the information held by a library. Library cards are free and provide users with access to a wealth of resources, many of which are not available on the internet (hard to believe I know, but not everything can be obtained via a Google search). And even if you don’t have a library card, you can still drop into the library at any time and make use of their resources. All of this provided without prejudice or bias. When you request information at your local public library you will not receive information based on the prejudices of a corporate sponsor. You will not be judged. You will not be misled. You will be provided with the information you require without question, without prejudice.
Libraries have not lost their relevance (image c/o Landeshauptstadt Stuttgart on Flickr)
It’s not just information provision and technology that make libraries so important. Libraries play an important role in developing literacy standards. If you really want to aid your child’s development, a regular trip to the library should be central to any parent’s weekly schedule. Not only is it essential, it makes economic sense too (on one trip I calculated a saving of £80). Keeping your child in books is certainly not cheap and encouraging your child to explore new worlds free from the constraints of tight family budgets (particularly in the current economic climate) will reap substantial benefits in the long term.
There is another reason why I think this is important however. It is not just about defending libraries from a pernicious assault, important though this undoubtedly is. The roles of the professional librarian and the paid library assistant are also being assaulted by this current drive of cuts to library services. We are seeing a degree of deprofessionalisation of the service on a scale that has no precedent. The belief has taken hold that anyone can run a library. As a result, we are seeing authorities slash funding and expecting communities to take over the provision of the service on a voluntary basis. Running a library is so simple, according to local authorities, that people should be able to provide the service without training, without experience and without pay.
Time for Vaizey to listen and act (image c/o IR Glover on Flickr).
The doctrine of deprofessionalisation has now firmly taken root and has spread throughout our network of libraries. So deeply has it become ingrained in the library narrative that it is threatening to spread across sectors. It is not just public libraries that have become afflicted, school libraries are also under threat due to budget cuts and no statutory requirement to provide them. Job losses have already been witnessed across both the HE and FE sectors in recent years as budgets are slashed and libraries are seen as a soft target due to the belief that the provision of the internet is sufficient, even if the individual’s skills are not. At this rate, will there even be a profession left in our schools, public libraries or universities? I hope for the best, but I fear for the worst. But I cannot let the fear paralyse me from taking action, which is why I will be making my voice heard on Tuesday.
If you want your voice to be heard, join us (if you can) at the rally and lobby. You can find more details here. If you are unable to attend, please consider writing to your MP to show your support for libraries and request that they support early day motion 2817. Now more than ever we need to speak up for libraries.
