More than a good book

For Libraries NI, the province’s public places of reading are also centres to serve the community more widely, as Chief Executive Irene Knox tells Owen McQuade.

Among the many reforms brought about by the Review of Public Administration, the formation of Libraries NI is one of the lesser-known changes but yet one which will eventually have an influence on most communities in Northern Ireland.

As the largest library authority in the UK with the largest catchment population, Chief Executive Irene Knox sees in it the opportunity to create a world-class service.

It came into operation on 1 April, following a merger of the five education and library boards’ public library services. Harmonisation is therefore her main priority for its first year as she oversees 109 libraries across Northern Ireland and around 1,000 staff.

A former librarian herself, and an avid reader, Knox was previously Chief Executive of the South Eastern Education and Library Board.

“We’ve inherited five different cultures and we need to create a single identity and single culture with which all staff can associate and which our clients recognise and appreciate,” she remarks.

“We’re structuring the organisation so that we are responsive across Northern Ireland. We’re a regional organisation, and it’s important that, while we plan regionally, we deliver locally. Senior people are located around the province so they can be available to deal with issues in their local area, to work in partnership with people in local areas, and with other organisations, whether statutory, voluntary or community to make sure that libraries are addressing local needs and complementing the work of others.”

In her ideal culture, the customers come first and the same high level of service – whether a person goes into a library in Enniskillen, Belfast, Derry or Armagh – must be consistent province-wide. The single library card – which allows users to borrow a book from any library in Northern Ireland and return it to any library – is one significant advantage for the authority on which it hopes to build.

Knox continues: “It’s a big challenge to bring together five separate services into a single organisation but I have to say people have been very responsive and staff have really come on board and I’m very pleased with the approach that people are taking to this major change programme.”

While the phrase is often a cliché, the staff in libraries are Libraries NI’s key resource as the kind of help and assistance a customer receives is down to the people who work there. Supporting and training staff is important, she adds, before emphasising the importance of communication.

The staff intranet and regular core briefs from the authority’s headquarters are two key ways in which the authority keeps its employees updated about developments.

“With 109 branch libraries across Northern Ireland and a thousand staff, many of whom work part-time, it’s important that we have good communication channels – up, down and across the organisation.”

Change

In many minds, libraries are still associated with books and bookshelves – “the traditional service” as Knox puts it. However, she points out that there is much more than that on offer, particularly with the advent of digital technology.

When approaching its work, Libraries NI has adopted four guiding themes.

By supporting learners and learning, libraries are a “gateway” to knowledge: “They provide a learning network which runs parallel to the formal education system so we support and complement and reinforce learning which takes place in other areas.” Young people, for example, often revise in libraries as exams approach. Reading also forms part of the learning theme as it is “key to everything that we do” – people still need to read when they use the internet – and Libraries NI wants to “encourage more people to read and enjoy reading”.

Providing access to information through the growing range of printed and electronic media is the second theme and one increasingly delivered through online resources. Northern Ireland’s public libraries have 1,200 public access computer terminals and skilled staff are on hand to help people find the information they are looking for. “Increasing the availability of online resources is one of our key priorities and just recently we have subscribed to Ancestry Library Edition, a family tree research programme which is proving extremely popular.”

Culturally, libraries provide venues for exhibitions, story-telling, yarn-spinning and a range of arts events, which can attract people who perhaps would not traditionally think about going to a museum or art gallery.

Finally, on heritage, they also have a “long tradition” of collecting material about the history and culture of Northern Ireland, Ireland and the UK. Many of the province’s libraries have “very significant collections” and this year, the authority will be looking at how to make these more accessible not only to local people but students and researchers around the world e.g. through the digitisation of printed manuscripts.

By far the greatest change over the last decade has been the growth of the internet and the electronic media in general.

“Libraries now and libraries 10 years ago are very different. We now have 1,200 public access terminals and if you go into any library, you’ll see that they are being used,” Knox comments. “Many of the challenges that face us over the next period of the time are associated with the electronic media. How do we respond to advances in technology? How do we respond to phenomena such as social networking?”

The IT network in libraries, she admits, is now under pressure due to high levels of usage with the key challenge being how to increase bandwidth to make for faster access. Ensuring that services are accessible 24/7 is also an important aim.

While still a fan of the traditional book, she recognises that for many young people or frequent travellers, downloadable ‘e-books’ – in formats such as the Kindle – are an increasingly popular option. About three million items are now available to borrow from Northern Ireland’s online library catalogue but Knox would like to see this further developed to give people access to libraries elsewhere.

Meanwhile, it is important not to ignore books or the traditional library services provided to communities.

For many years, she notes, book issues were going down but they are now increasing again. Possible reasons include the recession – as people have less money to spend on books – or the need for families to keep up with the large number of books that some of their children read, or indeed the improved quality of stock given that approximately £3 million per year is now spent on books and other material.

“Online access is important but our core business remains books and reading. One of the great things about a library and an advantage that we have compared to going into a bookshop, is the ability to obtain material which is out of print,” she continues.

“What I particularly enjoy about a library is that serendipity factor where you can browse and maybe try an author or try a particular genre that you wouldn’t buy. And if I don’t like it, well that’s fine – ‘I’ve tried it and I can move on to something else.’”

The Health in Mind project is one new way in which libraries are seeking to meet local needs. Using £1 million from the Big Lottery Fund over five years, they will provide information, support and guidance for people affected by mental illness, their families and carers. This involves working with four charities – Action Mental Health, Aware Defeat Depression, Cause and MindWise.

Social inclusion is promoted when libraries ‘join up’ with other services. The new Grove Library, in north Belfast, is situated alongside GP surgeries and leisure services. Libraries share buildings with a further education college in Cookstown and an arts centre in Strabane. “In my view shared buildings are the way forward in many areas,” she says.

“We’ve 109 locations. We’ve 29 mobile libraries. Somebody described us recently as an arterial route in Northern Ireland. The accessibility of our locations in so many communities allows us to work with other organisations to provide a joined up, one stop shop approach which is convenient for the public.”

First year target

Harmonising its own services, however, remains the target for the organisation’s first year in existence. By April 2010, Libraries NI also aims to have a vision for the future of public libraries and a plan for capital investment. A strategic review of the libraries estate is also under way with a view to making sure that the buildings are modern, well-equipped and easily located for local people.

In some areas, population changes must be considered: “We need to look at areas where there has been a lot of development over the last number of years and ask: ‘Do we need library services there?’” Moira, for example, is a growth town but still served from a small mobile. Other areas have seen their populations decline.

Returning to the perception issue, marketing is another challenge. She recalls showing people round Lisburn and other libraries and their genuine surprise at the range of facilities available.

“Many people don’t realise that library membership is free. It’s one of the few free services that exist now and people use it voluntarily. It’s a tremendous resource and we need to be able to market our services and attract people into our libraries and get the message across that we offer you a service that’s your entitlement, your right, so why not make use of it.”

Profile: Irene Knox

Always an avid reader, Irene left university after studying French and German not quite sure where to go next. She saw a job advert for a library assistant in the Southern Education and Library Board area and decided to “have a go at that until I really decide what I want to do.”

Irene later completed her professional postgraduate qualification in librarianship at the University of Wales, in Aberystwyth, and worked as librarian for a number of years before moving into broader education.

In the South-Eastern Education and Library Board, her work covered equal opportunities, human resources and special education. She sees her current role as “a dream job” both in setting up a new organisation and going back to her “first love” of libraries.

A country girl who grew up near Banbridge, Irene lives between Ballynahinch and Dromara. Her interests include the theatre, cinema and her two dogs who require “a lot of walking”.