State of public library reference and information services

In 2009 the Society of Chief Librarians (SCL) carried out a national survey of reference and information services.

The aim was to find out about services currently provided to the public and how they are used, and the challenges faced in developing these services in future.

Who took part

Every local authority library service in England and Wales was asked to take part in this survey, including East Sussex, and 86 authorities completed the survey – a response rate of 58%.

This survey was carried out by library staff from Milton Keynes and Buckinghamshire.

Background information

The Society of Chief Librarians (SCL) is a local government association made up of the chief librarian of each library authority in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. They take a leading role in developing public libraries by:

• sharing best practice
• advocating continuous improvement on behalf of local people
• leading the debate on the future of the public library service.

Read more about the Society of Chief Librarians.

Results

This survey found that in 2009:

• the amount of space devoted to reference services in libraries has reduced
• working with partners is important, including within councils and other agencies such as academic and special libraries, health services, children's centres
• 69.7% of authorities still provide at least one reference library, and 71.9% still have a separate reference desk
• 80% of library services offer a referral system, where a central team deal with enquiries and resources across the authority
• enquiries are dealt with mainly by phone and email, while letters and fax have largely disappeared
• 32% of services have merged their lending and reference stock
• 67% of authorities are responsible for providing local studies or non-core reference services
• 83% of respondents give computer support to customers
• there is a focus on particular subjects, including:
  • newspapers (94%)
  • periodicals and journals (94%)
  • community information (89%)
  • local studies and family history (84%)
  • European Union (65%)
  • business (64%)
  • careers (55%)
  • law (37%)
  • local government (19%)
• the key challenges for the service are:
  • budget (55%)
  • staff and training (41%)
  • effect of Google and Wikipedia (31%)
  • marketing and profile of services (22%)
  • public lack of skills in finding and judging information (18%)
  • online or print debate (16%)
  • competitors (6%)
  • space for storage or archives (6%).

Download the report below to see the full results and recommendations on how library services can use this feedback to develop services in future.

What's happening in East Sussex

We've also asked people in East Sussex about using our reference and information services as part of local and national surveys. Find out what you told us:

• Can your library improve your health and wellbeing? 2011
• What do you want from library services? 2009
• Reference libraries user survey 2004-05
• Local studies in libraries 2004
• Adult Public Library User Survey 2009
• Children's Public Library User Survey 2008
• Adult Public Library User Survey 2006
• Children's Public Library User Survey 2006
• Public Library User Surveys 2003-2004

Read about what we're doing to improve our services in Key developments, policies and plans in libraries.

Enquiries

For more information about library services in East Sussex, please contact:

Dr Irene Campbell, Assistant Director, Community Services
Phone: 01273 481347
Email: irene.campbell@eastsussex.gov.uk

Acrobat (PDF)
State of public library reference and information services in 2009 (207k) Report about library services in England and Wales and recommendations for providing and developing services in future, carried out by the Society of Chief Librarians (40 pages)