Open+ at Marple Library: What does it mean for Marple people?

[NeilCorrie]

   

• We expressed concern at the potential loss of the wonderful library staff and were assured that there would be no redundancies. While this is positive and does help to alleviate concerns, we are conscious that promises have been made in the past and not kept (like the undertaking given by the council to retain a full-time Park Keeper in Memorial Park that was not fulfilled).

Wonderful there's no redundancies, but it sounds somewhat disingenuous in how it was worded to you.

Was it clearly stated to the Society+Friends that most library staff are on fixed term contracts, which end early next year ?  Unlike the books with which they work, those fixed term contracts are not being renewed.

[Rudolph Hucker]

👍
What a fantastic letter from the bookworms. Sums it up perfectly. Sadly my guess is that it won't get the considered response it deserves.....

Well done though bookworms, and thank you on behalf of those of us less eloquent!

RH.

[admin]

Marple Book Clubs (Bookworms)

Marple Book Clubs have provided a copy of a letter they have sent to Library Management, Council Officers and Local Councillors concerning this matter.

Signatures and email addresses have been removed from this copy:

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[admin]

Marple Civic Society and Friends of the Park meet with Library Management staff

Yesterday two committee members from Marple Civic Society and I (representing Friends of the Park) met with two of the Library Management staff to discuss Open+ and the Library Consultation that is currently underway. Discussions were reassuring in part, although they were unable to tell us how many staffed hours would be lost from April next year, which remains a key concern.

The main points from the meeting were:

• We stressed our opinion that it is crucial Open+ and reduced staffing hours should not impact or restrict local groups from using the library facilities for meetings and activities in exactly the same way as they do now (including access to the toilet). The library managers appear to be committed to achieving that and we look forward to details of how it will be made to work.

• The restrictions to the upper floor of the library during Open+ hours are due to insurance issues, particularly the potential for an accident involving a fall from the balcony. We asked that they look into the viability and cost of installing some kind of (clear) barrier to make this safer, and give potential for the whole library to be open during Open+. We offered to discuss how the community may be able to help find funding for this if it did prove to be viable.

• We stressed the importance of groups being able to continue to use the library for exhibitions and for people to be able to visit them while the library is open, even during Open+. We also reiterated that we considered it unsatisfactory that half the library space (upstairs) will not be available to users during Open+ hours. The degree to which this impacts on general community use will depend on the level of staffed hours lost but we feel it is important to look for solutions to this issue.

• We expressed concerns about Open+ restrictions for unaccompanied under 16s. The severity of this of course depends on the extent of cuts to staffed hours and the timing of staffed sessions.

• We expressed concern at the potential loss of the wonderful library staff and were assured that there would be no redundancies. While this is positive and does help to alleviate concerns, we are conscious that promises have been made in the past and not kept (like the undertaking given by the council to retain a full-time Park Keeper in Memorial Park that was not fulfilled).

• We expressed concern that the leaflet promoting Open+ presents it in a purely positive way without telling people that from next April there will be cuts to staffed hours. This means that anyone reading it in isolation would not see a particular need to respond to the consultation. The library management emphasised that they are eager for local people to complete the consultation and asked for the help of Marple Civic Society, Friends of the Park and the Marple Website to encourage more people to respond.

• We also explained a growing concern that consultations like this one seem to come to people's attention via the grapevine, rather than any formal notification process. This gives an impression that although the council is consulting they hope to do so without too many people noticing or understanding the significance. We believe that consultations that may be of concern to Marple residents should be formally announced at Marple Area Committee Meetings and will raise this as a public question with the Committee. The library managers also agreed to raise this internally themselves.

So what can you do? Pretty much as before:

• Complete the consultation using the comments section to highlight your own concerns and what you think is important. In particular (in our view) that local groups must be able continue as they are and that it is unsatisfactory for half the library to be out of bounds during Open+ hours.

• Please also express your concerns to local MP William Wragg and to our six local councillors.

You have until 15 December to respond to the consultation: https://consultation.stockport.gov.uk/communications/libaries-consultation/

[Newbie1]

Like the Civic Society says, the consultation is very limited and it appears that the bulk of the decisions about the cuts to the library services have already been made.

I think it is disgraceful that under 16s will not be permitted to use the library during the unstaffed times.  Young people should be encouraged to read as much as possible and this policy, to my mind, is wholly unacceptable.  My son was an avid reader when he was younger, and I used to order him several books a week from the library.  He was always asking me if his books were ready for collection, and he used to love walking up to the library on his own to collect them.  It saddens me to think that other children won't be able to engage with  the library in this way.

[admin]

Marple Civic Society has now shared its concerns over the Open+ Consultation and Marple Library:

http://marplecivicsociety.blogspot.com/2018/11/changes-to-marple-library-open.html
 

[amazon]

I have picked up a questionnaire from the library this morning and have completed it ready to return later in the week. I have completed it very much in line with the issued raised by admin, and have put my comment in Question 12 expressing my total disagreement with the proposals. The library is an excellent asset for Marple and extremely well used. Leave it as it is.

The library may be going if the new swimming baths is built there it could be all incoparated  into one including the senior citizens hall that is one of the options
            being looked at .it needs remodernising any way .

[admin]

For those like myself who are less able, entering a library alone is a rather daunting prospect.  I doubt I will be able to make use of this Open+, and will be constrained by the exceedingly short opening times that are being proposed.  Blatant discrimination to those less fortunate.

The problem is that we don't know what the cuts in staffed times will be, so it is very difficult to assess the true impact of what is proposed.

In Tameside they have reduced the staffed hours of 1 library by 56%, 4 by 51%, 1 by 36%, 1 by 30% and 1 (their central library) is unchanged.

That's an average of just over 40% staffed hours reduced across 8 libraries.

If Marple Library were reduced by 40% then it would be a devastating impact given that half the library's facilities would not be accessible during so called Open Plus.

More like Open Minus!

Data from here: https://tamesidereporter.com/2017/03/tameside-libraries-open-longer-staffed-for-less/

[wheels]

............. by the exceedingly short opening times that are being proposed.........

Can you point me to where you have seen these "exceedingly short opening hours"

[wheels]

I've been in several other countries New Zealand, Holland and Poland spring to mind where such schemes work well and the public live it.

[NeilCorrie]

Thanks for highlighting this.  Have filled out the survey and submitted it online, with plenty of feedback added in there via Question #12.

Must be costing the council an absolute fortune to kit out all these libraries with all this new kit - security camera / card readers.

For those like myself who are less able, entering a library alone is a rather daunting prospect.  I doubt I will be able to make use of this Open+, and will be constrained by the exceedingly short opening times that are being proposed.  Blatant discrimination to those less fortunate.

I love Memorial Park, but having it floodlit every night seems a little excessive. (they don't seem to be able to turn off the lights in the library any more, must be related to this Open+ and how it works).  Screw up the libraries and while we're at it do the same for the environment ?

[Stephen]

I have picked up a questionnaire from the library this morning and have completed it ready to return later in the week. I have completed it very much in line with the issued raised by admin, and have put my comment in Question 12 expressing my total disagreement with the proposals. The library is an excellent asset for Marple and extremely well used. Leave it as it is.

[admin]

Open+ at Marple Library: What does it mean for Marple?

Stockport Council are currently consulting on access to Marple Library during unstaffed hours.



A leaflet (attached to the bottom of this post) introducing the Open+ scheme at Marple Library promotes it as “a way of enabling us to open the library for extra hours each week, unstaffed, using self-service technology.” On the face of it this sounds like a great addition to the library services, allowing people who can't get there during normal opening hours to take advantage of the facilities.

Unfortunately though, it doesn't look like it will be as simple as that!

The preface to the consultation explains that the introduction of Open Library technology and a reduction in staffed hours was a 2018/19 budget proposal agreed by full Council.  Reduced core staffed hours will be introduced at the library from 1 April 2019. Who knew until now!

During Open+ hours at Marple Library there will be no access to the upstairs meeting rooms, the disabled toilet and other facilities on the top floor. There will be no staff around to answer enquiries or help with PCs and under 16s will be excluded. Printing from the public computers will not be possible, photocopies will not be available and customers will not be able to take out DVDs. Visitors will only be able to access the downstairs facilities at all if they have attended an induction session and pre-registered for access by providing two documents for proof of identity. So the impact of this change can only be assessed if people know the changes to staffed hours.

How will it impact on Local Groups?

Numerous groups (Book Clubs, Reading Groups, Drama Classes, Exercise Classes, Children's Groups and Community Groups) use the upstairs library facilities for activities, meetings and exhibitions. How will these be impacted by Open+ restrictions? We don't know! So how can we possibly respond to this consultation properly and concisely?

My own group, Friends of Marple Memorial Park, have used the library's upstairs meeting room for 15 years. We arrive while the library is staffed and open during the evening and we are trusted with the keys to lock-up when we leave after it is closed. There are several other groups who have a similar arrangement too. Will this continue or will we be forced to find somewhere else? We don't know! We haven't been told! So how can we assess the impact these changes will have on our local groups?

There is no indication of how will things change in April 2019

The library is currently open Monday 10am–7pm, Tuesday 9am–7pm, Wednesday 9am–1pm, Thursday 9am–5pm, Friday 9am–6pm and Saturday 9am–4pm fully staffed. It is not clear how these staffed hours will be reduced from 1 April 2019, so how can anyone assess how changes will impact their use of Marple Library? Obviously we will find out in April next year how much the staffed hours are to be reduced but the consultation will be done and dusted by then and used to show that people supported the introduction of Open+.

Is the consultation flawed because of this?
Let's have a look at some of the questions:

Question 2 shows a grid of 18 time periods covering a six day week. The library is currently staffed for 13 of these 18 time periods but we are asked to choose up to 3 time periods across the week when we would like to use the library with staff available. Is this reasonable? Is 3 periods out of 18 indicative of the level of staffed hours cuts that they propose to make? This would be devastating!

Question 5 asks who you would usually go the the library with? It gives 7 options but asks you to check one box only. In my case, and I'm sure for many other users, to properly represent how I use Marple Library I need to tick at least 4 boxes to show that I go alone, with my spouse, with my grandchildren and to attend a group activity. Restricting people to one response is unrepresentative of how people use Marple Library. So it's recommended you use “Other” and give a full answer.

Question 9 - is simply disingenuous, asking how convenient it would be for you to access the Library outside of the current opening times? It makes no mention of what the opening times will be after April 2019, so any answers will be completely meaningless in that context but are likely to be used to justify whatever changes they make: “Oh, during the consultation people said it would be really convenient to access the library outside of normal hours!”

Question 10 – more of the same! How likely are you to access the library on a self-service basis? How can we answer this? Personally, based on current hours, very unlikely, but if they cut staffed-hours to 3 out of the 18 periods currently staffed (a cut of 83%) then probably very likely!

Question 11 – perhaps the most worrying of the lot! Given that the council will have less money to spend on services in the future, do you agree or disagree with the approach that to introduce more self-service technology into libraries is preferable to closing library buildings? Is there a threat here? Are we being bullied into strongly agreeing with this for the fear that Marple Library will be closed if we don't? Seems like we've been backed into a corner without realising it!

What can you do?

Complete the Consultation and tell as many other friends and family to do it too.

Here's the link: https://consultation.stockport.gov.uk/communications/libaries-consultation/

It's also available in paper form at Marple Library too.

If you agree with it all, then fine, say so, but if you don't, or if you are worried by this like many library users I know, then use Question 12 – Further comments about this consultation – to tell the council your concerns.

The consultation closes on 15 December, so we've got a month to spread it far and wide and get as many responses as possible for the council to take into account when they make their decisions.

You can also:

Write to your local MP William Wragg and tell him why you are concerned.

Contact all 6 of Marple's Local Councillors and tell them your concerns too. You can contact them by email, telephone or attend one of their surgeries at Marple Library and other locations.

The Key Message is don't be complacent: HAVE YOU SAY NOW!

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