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margaret hodge

Margaret Hodge's speech to the Association of London Chief Librarians

Thursday 6 March 2008

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I’m very pleased to be here to talk to you today:

Not simply because London’s libraries have been a part of my life since childhood
And not simply because it’s always good to visit Brighton, however briefly
But mostly because today we are celebrating World Book Day. And that’s an important day for anyone – anyone like you and me – that loves the written word and believes – as I do – that the English language and its literature are, quite simply, one of the greatest contributions that this country makes to the world.

But I wonder how many of you also knew that 6 March is the anniversary of the Battle of the Alamo? Hopefully, running your library service in a London borough week by week doesn’t feel too much like the Battle of the Alamo. But if it does, at least you John Waynes and Linda Cristals have been able to escape the siege to come to the seaside for a couple of days.

Your theme is to position libraries centre stage in the community of the future. I’m all in favour of that. But I’m also keen to see libraries centre stage in the community of the present.

And what do I mean by this? Well, for me, being centre stage means being a central, essential and permanent feature of the places where we live. The place where people, things and importantly books, information and literature are the focus of interest, a place of influence, a place which is at the heart of the local community being.

Now for my part, I’m a great believer in the value of public libraries. I know how they allow anyone, of any background, and of any age, to have free access to the vast store of information and inspiration they contain. And I know how this can enrich people’s minds and spirits, raise educational standards and generally encourage their creativity. In fact I’d be surprised if anyone with experience of local government, as an MP and as a Minister would believe anything else.

So our challenge is to reach the sceptics:

To get that value more widely understood
To health check the public library service and make sure it remains relevant to 21st century communities, and
To bring them centre stage again.

And I say ‘again’ for a reason. Because there’s no rule of public life that says that all institutions should slip into genteel decline once they reach a certain peak of public attention. And there’s no given right for institutions to prosper in the present if they cease to be relevant and popular.

Equally there is absolutely no reason, I believe, why public libraries should not be as widely-used today as they were in their peak year of 1980. But the truth is that the figures do make for some gloomy reading. The latest CIPFA stats tell us that although overall spend is up by 17% over the last 10 years, the number of books borrowed is down by 34% in the same period. I know you’ll plead resources, but I don’t think that’s the real reason for the decline. In my view the offer from libraries needs to be different. More of that later.

Today, as I mentioned, we celebrate the eleventh World Book Day here in Britain. This is a tremendous initiative. It promotes books and reading, and it works because publishers, booksellers, teachers and, yes, librarians like you put the time and trouble in to make it fly. Thousands of schools up and down the country are involved, and many are running special activities for their children. This is all to the good, and I congratulate all concerned.

World Book Day is an international event, and there will be comparable events in other countries as the month wears on. And one thing it reminds us of is how fortunate we are in this country to have free access to books and learning in every community. Because what we too often take for granted is still a far off aspiration for some people in less stable parts of the world.

In January, for example, I had the great privilege of hearing Doris Lessing speaking when she received the Nobel Prize in London and I have read her contribution to mark the occassion. She paints a graphic picture of life in Zimbabwe, and of the desperate need and thirst for books in schools and communities.

In contrast, she describes this country as “a treasure-house of literature, a legacy of languages, poems and histories, and a bequest of stories”.

I think she’s right, and I think we owe it to our communities to share this wealth through our library collections as widely as we can.

Now if we agree that England is a treasure-house of literature; lending books and promoting a love of reading has to remain the core business for libraries. That’s a no-brainer.

Because in doing so, you give an enormous boost to our nation’s literacy. You help enrich and transform people’s lives through the written word.

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And all of that helps build a bridge to many other ambitions too:

crossing digital divides
crossing cultural divides, and
crossing learning divides

Your libraries are valuable community spaces where much can happen.

But the written word is – to borrow a phrase used by someone in this very city some eight years ago – the irreducible core of the service.

Challenges of London

But let’s put those bracing seaside memories to one side for a moment and go back to London. I’ve been MP for Barking since 1994, and before that a councillor in Islington for many years. I’m also a London resident. So I have a keen personal interest in seeing a library service that provides London people with what they want and need.

Serving communities in London brings many challenges. The capital is - joyously - so complex.

It seems like there’s more of everything in London – more people, more buildings, greater diversity, greater social inequality, more ways to earn and spend your money, and a lot more traffic!

It’s a city of contrasts – great prosperity but also great poverty. Seventeen of the 33 London boroughs are among the 20 most deprived areas in the country, and London has the lowest employment rate in the country. I sometimes smile when I hear the anguished howls of regional commentators who seem to really think that all our streets are paved with gold.

You, though, are more realistic. You are responding to the opportunity that lies within that challenge. Indeed, I am pleased to say that London’s libraries are often leading the way, undertaking innovative projects that break new ground and which others can copy.

Government Support

The Government is playing its part too.

Last month we announced a really important and really exciting new contribution which we called ‘Finding Your Talent’– that every young person should enjoy five hours of culture a week both within and outside school hours. It’s part of our drive to broaden the experience and unlock the creative talent of all young people. Participating in cultural activities, of course including libraries, can have a huge impact on children and young people, in terms of developing their skills and appreciation, and helping them to learn. So we want every child to have the chance to develop their artistic and creative skills. We’ve invited bids for pilots in ten areas around the country and I really want our libraries to play their part in fulfilling the offer.

2008 is, of course, the National Year of Reading. We want children, adults and family learners to understand that reading – for pleasure and for purpose – can change their lives for the better, now and for the future.

The National Year of Reading presents a fantastic opportunity for libraries to show what they can do. I am pleased that this has been recognised from the outset and I know you are all raring to go. I very much hope the Year will bring significant benefits for you too in terms of recognition and usage. And it’s entirely fitting that the Year kicks off in April with a national campaign to drive up library membership.

To help the Year, we have forged new programmes with the Department for Children Schools and Families to help libraries build their partnerships with schools and nurseries.

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Book Ahead and Boys into Books represent notable investment in libraries by government and they will help to put libraries on both national and local agendas.

They help shine the spotlight on libraries and help others realise the valuable part libraries can play.

Challenges of the Future

But what about the challenges of the future? How can we ensure libraries remain relevant and important and centre stage? How can we reverse the gradual decline of recent years? How can we ensure libraries are properly used and enjoyed?

And these are tough challenges. I reflect on this when I go to, or past my local bookshops. The shop is always brimming with people. Mums and dads with their children during the day, chatting together and reading books and adults in the evening, browsing through the books and papers while sipping a decent cup of coffee and reflecting on the ‘three for two’ offers tempting them.

Now the class warriors amongst us will say that it’s just the well-off, middle class people who can afford to go to Borders. Well that’s patronising rubbish, for a start.

And even if it weren’t, where does it say that our libraries can’t engage people in the same way? And for heaven’s sake libraries are FREE! It’s not just ‘three for two’, it’s ‘seven – or sometimes more - for one’ - and the ‘one’ doesn’t cost a bean!

I’m pushing this point for simplistic effect, of course. I entirely accept that libraries face strong competition. Over recent years, books have become cheaper to buy and people do have more disposable income.

But ladies and gentlemen, this is not a bad thing.

And people have greater demands on their time and less time for reading.

And increasing numbers of people have their own computers, so they don’t need to go to the library to use the People’s Network as often as they did in the early days.
Again, ladies and gentlemen, this is not a bad thing.

The point is, our shared commitment and passion to promote reading, literacy and learning in people of all ages remains as strong as ever. The goalposts may move from time to time as priorities adapt to new situations, but the object of the game remains the same: using the written word to empower, educate and delight ordinary people.

And the Government’s top priorities impact directly on Libraries. Not only are we determined to unlock the potential in every child through giving each child an equal opportunity in education. But we also want to tackle the historic problem of 4.5 million people of working age who need to improve their basic skills in literacy and numeracy if they are to contribute effectively both at work and with their families.

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How can libraries respond to these big challenges?

That’s the 64 million dollar question which I’m sure you will be debating over the next couple of days. May I share with you a few thoughts to help your debate? I think you need to:

Modernise your library buildings and make your services more enticing and more customer-focused, especially for children and young people. We’ve got to get more people who both have the confidence to come into a library and then choose to spend time in libraries and borrowing books from libraries. And you should involve local people in designing and deciding what service to provide; and
Work more closely with people in your communities – getting out of the library into community halls, children’s centres or church halls – to get the message about literacy and learning more widely heard and understood
Market libraries’ benefits – so that your trump cards of free access, great free resources and helpful staff become better known, especially for those who have got out of the library-going ‘habit’.

Now I know that much is being done already. But I also know that the national picture suggests there is still more to do.

And yet another thing I know is that keeping centre stage with an increasingly discerning and demanding population might require some innovative customer measures.

So which of you is going to be first to provide:

24/7 opening? Not necessarily literally, but open in the evenings and all week-end when people have time to get to the library
a web-based lending service with home delivery?
libraries in shopping centres or at railway stations, where thousands of people pass every day? Certainly centre-stage and customer-focused
Combining with other customer-focused public services so that people take that first important step and come through your front door
A deal with a Starbucks or a Costa to give places in libraries where people can sit, relax and meet their friends with a coffee and a book?
having other forms of reading in London libraries to attract young males - comics, manga, film scripts or music lyrics?
a single London library card – and not just one that simply allows multi-membership of all London library services, but goes further: allowing you to borrow in Bromley and return in Barnet, for example?
a Loyalty Card that gives users a one-day travelcard or a pair of cinema tickets for every ten visits?
or even a tie-in with Amazon: You’ve borrowed the book - now send a brand-new copy to a friend.

The People’s Network computers were a tremendous step-change for libraries, but in lots of ways they were just a beginning.

How should the sector respond to new technology and keep relevant to the Google Generation?

But – as Clint Eastwood said in Dirty Harry (forgive me, I am Films Minister too) – “I know what you’re thinking.” How do we afford this when budgets are under such pressure? It’s all very well Margaret Hodge having new ideas, but where’s the money, coming from?

Well, it seems to me that with 33 boroughs working in such close proximity there ought to be scope for efficiencies through greater collaboration.

Indeed I would put it to you, if you don’t innovate you will decline. So you’ve got to prioritise investment in new services if you want to secure a long-term future.

And it ought to be possible to share services and support functions such as inter-library lending, IT systems and delivery systems and thereby spend more effectively.

Conclusion

So where do we go from here? How do we get from here to there? Well, your challenge is to build on what you’re doing at the moment, speed up the pace of innovation, involving your communities and giving people flexible and high quality services.

My challenge is to take the best of what you do and give it a national platform.

And our collective challenge is to prove library services deliver against national agendas and deserve a place centre stage in the community of the future.

I believe we can pull this off. We can ensure that the capital’s libraries are a vital and vibrant part of London’s future, that they play a leading role in the cast, with a prominent position on stage and that they receive due accolade in local authority plans and priorities.

And if all this feels like a bit of a battle at times, just remember the Alamo.

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