From public to volunteer library provision in the UK: lesson to be learnt – one size does not fit all

Abstract

This paper reports on research findings on the transfer of public library services to volunteer delivery in the UK between 2014 and 2016, as a result of austerity and budget cuts by local government.The research asked two key questions: are libraries sustainable after their transfer and what lessons can be learnt from these transfers that will ensure success and sustainability? Initial findings indicate that cases in different locations vary and that 'one size does not fit all'. key words library • volunteers • asset transfer • sustainability

Libraries, sustainability and sustainable development: a review of the research literature

“…In times of austerity and budget cuts, Wilson (2012, p. 78) asks if libraries can "use scarcity to fuel the imagination?" Looking across the publications classified as economic, we find many and highly creative suggestions for how libraries can do more with less; for example, using volunteers in library provision (Forbes et al, 2017) or optimizing digital library services (Michnik, 2015;Koukopoulos et al, 2019).…”

“…University librarian Wilson (2012, p. 78) stresses that “sustainability is the capacity to endure,” which entails making the most of the library's resources, understood both as monetary resources but also as staff competencies, time and material equipment. In times of austerity and budget cuts, Wilson (2012, p. 78) asks if libraries can “use scarcity to fuel the imagination?” Looking across the publications classified as economic, we find many and highly creative suggestions for how libraries can do more with less; for example, using volunteers in library provision (Forbes et al. , 2017) or optimizing digital library services (Michnik, 2015; Koukopoulos et al.…”

Exploring spatiotemporal variations in public library provision following a prolonged period of economic austerity: A GIS approach

“…As a result of this fiscal pressure, local governments have been forced to re‐evaluate their library service delivery models (Hastings et al., ), often leading to service reconfiguration (e.g., reduced opening hours, reductions in full‐time professional staff, co‐production with local civil society, or the co‐location of services), or closure (Ballinger, ; BBC, ; CIPFA, ). Consequently, this has led some commentators to question the future sustainability of library services in some areas (Forbes et al., ). In an attempt to move beyond a solely economic narrative, other commentators have highlighted the lived experience (and geographies) of austerity in everyday life (e.g., Hall, ), and in the context of public libraries specifically (Hitchen, ; Norcup, ).…”

“…Since 2010, library opening hours in England have been reduced by an average of 6% (Thorpe, ), for example, while the number of library service delivery points across the UK (excluding Northern Ireland) has decreased by 16%, and employee numbers by 33% (Woodhouse & Zayed, ). During this time, both the management and delivery of library services have become more reliant on varying degrees of voluntary contributions (Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accounting [CIPFA], ; Smith, ), leading to an uneven landscape of provision (Forbes et al., ). This is particularly evident in Wales, where it has been suggested that one in ten public libraries are now delivered solely by volunteers (Ballinger, ).…”

Public museums in a time of crisis: The case of museum asset transfer

“…Museum asset transfer involves a single museum that the local authority no longer considers to be part of the museum service (for a discussion of why this occurs see , which means organizations managing these museums tend to receive no grant funding from the local authority, hence why they are often largely staffed by volunteers. Existing studies of asset transfer have drawn out the limitations of relying on volunteers to fill gaps left by a diminishing state, with a particular emphasis on the implications for volunteers and the uneven distribution of the financial and social capital needed to undertake transfer (Nichols et al, 2015;Findlay-King et al, 2017;Forbes et al, 2017;Moore and McKee 2013). As Forkert (2016) and Rose (2019) point out, undertaking asset transfer may also be experienced with a sense of political discomfort for those who see their actions as 'complicit with neoliberal ideology that devolves responsibility for public problem-solving onto hard-pressed individuals and communities' (334).…”