Libraries Taskforce
Implementing the Independent Library Report for England, providing leadership and helping to reinvigorate the public library service.
Role of the Taskforce
The Taskforce鈥檚 role is to enable the delivery of the recommendations from the Independent Library Report for England and to build upon and add value to existing good practice, partnerships and other activities that are already supporting public libraries. It also promotes libraries to national and local government and to potential funders, and creates a strong and coherent narrative around the contribution public libraries make to society and to local communities.
The Taskforce reports to ministers via the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the Local Government Association (LGA).
The priorities for the Libraries Taskforce are:
- promoting public libraries to the public and to decision-makers
- providing library services and potential partners with easy access to evidence and data to inform their decision-making
- providing clearly signposted, step by step guidance and peer support to support sustainable library services
- helping the sector (paid staff and volunteers) obtain the insights, skills and support it needs for the future
Membership
The members of the Taskforce are:
- , Chief Executive of Warrington Borough Council and Chair of the Libraries Taskforce
- , Head of Libraries Strategy and Delivery, DCMS
- , OBE, Director of Patient Experience, NHS England
- , Chief Executive, Cumbria County Council
- , President of Libraries Connected (formerly the Society of Chief Librarians) (and Libraries and Information Services Manager, Stockton-on-Tees)
- , Chief Executive, Book Trust
- , Chief Executive of the British Library
- , Chief Executive for London Boroughs of Wandsworth and Richmond
- , Chief Executive of the Reading Agency
- , Member, LGA Culture, Tourism and Sport Board
- , Deputy Director - Priorities and Programmes Division, Public Health England
- , Chief Executive of CILIP, the library and information association
- , Member of Chief Cultural and Leisure Officers Association and Chief Executive of Vision Redbridge Culture and Leisure
- , Director, Libraries and Birmingham, Arts Council England
Governance
- An Independent Review of E-Lending in Public Libraries in England
- Independent Library Report for England
- Libraries Taskforce terms of reference (March 2019)
- Collection: Minutes of the Libraries Taskforce
- Progress reports
- Communications sub-group terms of reference
- Collection: Single Library Digital Presence Steering Group
Published documents
- Libraries Deliver: Ambition for Public Libraries in England 2016 to 2021 and
- Libraries as a statutory service - see also Ministerial letters regarding DCMS consideration of representations about local library services
- published by CILIP and SCL (now Libraries Connected)
- Libraries Deliver newsletter
- Consultation (closed 3 June 2016) - Libraries Deliver: Ambition for Public Libraries in England 2016-2021
Toolkits / guidance
- Libraries Shaping the Future: good practice toolkit and case studies
- Community Managed Libraries: good practice toolkit and case studies
- Libraries: Alternative Delivery Models toolkit
- Strategic planning of library services toolkit
- Benchmarking Framework for library services
- Makerspaces and libraries
- Applying for funding
- Materials and write ups of masterclasses on:
Research
- Evaluation of the Libraries: Opportunities for Everyone innovation fund
- Research programme
- Research and analysis to explore the service effectiveness and sustainability of community managed libraries in England
Data
- Public libraries in England: basic dataset
- Contents list of core dataset for libraries
- Outcomes Progress Indicators for libraries in England
- Analysing data: CIPFA statistics and the future of England鈥檚 libraries
Funding
- Libraries: Opportunities for Everyone innovation fund -
Speeches
- John Glen, Minister for Arts, Heritage and Tourism鈥檚 speech on the launch of SCL鈥檚 culture offer
- Rob Wilson, Minister for Civil Society at the London Library Ambition sector forum
- Ed Vaizey, Minister for Culture and the Digital Economy at the launch of SCL鈥檚 Universal Learning Offer
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