A report summarising the responses to the libraries consultation on vision and strategy which ran from 9 August-17 September 2021, to be read alongside the initial data review of 2019/20 data (July HNL Committee), proposing adoption of key strategic priorities for the library service and the development of a strategy and delivery plan for Reading’s Libraries.

Further to Minute 11 of the meeting held on 6 July 2021, the Executive Director of Economic Growth and Neighbourhood Services submitted a report which summarised the responses to recent libraries consultation on vision and strategy, proposed the adoption of key strategic priorities for the library service and the development of a strategy and delivery plan for Reading Libraries.  The following documents were appended to the report:

Appendix 1:  Detailed findings from Consultation August – September 2021;

Appendix 2:  Library Consultation Survey Results in full;

Appendix 3:  Home Library Survey Results in full;

Appendix 4:  Equality Impact Assessment for Library Strategy 2022-2025.

The report explained that officers had used the results of the consultation to identify five strategic priorities for the Library Service for 2022 to 2025:

·       Supporting our communities as we recovered from the Covid-19 pandemic;

·       Helping Children and Young People;

·       Improving access to online services;

·       Supporting improvement in Health, Wellbeing and Literacy;

·       Bringing arts, culture and heritage into library spaces.

The report stated that the most regularly used services were book lending, rhymetime, e-books and the Summer Reading Challenge for children.  Most service users wanted more online resources, computer coding clubs, spaces to create and use new technologies and community language and culture collections to be developed in the future.  Overall the consultation showed strong agreement for the proposed strategic themes, with a particularly large number of additional comments focusing on the importance of the children’s side of the library service.  Officers would use that data provided by the consultation responses to inform the development of the new Library Delivery Plan.

Resolved:

(1)      That the outcome of the consultation activity be noted;

(2)      That the strategic priorities for the library service be adopted as follows:

·            Supporting our communities as we recovered from the Covid-19 pandemic;

·            Helping Children and Young People;

·            Improving access to online services;

·            Supporting improvement in Health, Wellbeing and Literacy;

·            Bringing arts, culture and heritage into library spaces;

(3)      That officers be authorised to develop a delivery plan for the library service, which was based upon and took into consideration the strategic priorities for the library service.