Blackheath Village Library Users Group

NEWSLETTER

September 2006

It is a long time since the Blackheath Village Library Users Group met, and your committee thought it time to bring you up to date with some developments likely to affect us all.

The lease on the library building

Lewisham’s lease on the building ends on 24 June 2007. In August this year Antonio Rizzo, Resources & Service Development Librarian, wrote to us "You will be pleased to hear that we are still committed to providing a library service in Blackheath and that our colleagues are completing the negotiations for the renewal of the lease."

This sounds promising, but until the lease is renewed we should remain watchful. Other factors could have a knock-on effect on what happens to our library. The recent elections have brought changes to Lewisham Council. The library service is under-funded. The rent for the building is likely to rise (see "Library Service Plan" below). Our new Councillors are holding their surgeries away from the Library (see below) and plans for the Manor House have changed (see below). If the lease is not renewed it would be hard to find comparable premises within the Village. At worst we might find ourselves back where we were in 1999, fighting a move to somewhere we think quite unsuitable for people who live, work or shop in Blackheath.

Lewisham residents who have any views about the location of the library might write or speak to our new Councillors, just to let them know if you think it important that the library stays within the village and is at least its present size. (See "Lewisham’s new Councillors for Blackheath Ward" below).

Greenwich residents also have a right to a local library and could ask their Councillors to make sure their interest is impressed on Lewisham. (See "Greenwich Councillors" below).

It is never a bad idea to get to know elected representatives and occasionally to remind them that we care about our library, and are liable to turn stroppy if they forget it.

Lewisham’s new Councillors for Blackheath Ward

Mark Bennett, Godfried Gyechie, and Chris Maines were elected in May to represent Lewisham Council’s Blackheath Ward.

Anne Bennet has tried to contact the new Councillors, but is still waiting for a reply, so we don’t know how interested they will be in our library, nor whether any one of them will be paying particular attention to the village. Indeed, spotting a Councillor in the village could become a rarity as they no longer hold surgeries in the rooms above our library - instead you can meet them at St Margarets Church, Lee Terrace (go right from the main West door to the crypt entrance on the South side) on the first Tuesday of the month at 6.30pm – 7.30pm. Rumour says the change is because there’s no disabled access to the upstairs rooms in the library building (the Councillors had to come down to the library to speak to anyone who has trouble with stairs). The new arrangement could reduce the library’s importance as a centre of local activity.

The Councillors’ postal address is c/o Lewisham Town Hall, Catford, London SE6 4RU. Or, you could send them an email at :-
cllr_mark.bennett@lewisham.gov.uk , cllr_godfried.gyechie@lewisham.gov.uk and cllr_chris.maines@lewisham.gov.uk

Greenwich Councillors

Councillors in the two wards close to the library are:

Blackheath Westcombe

Geoffrey Brighty, geoffrey.brighty@greenwich.gov.uk
Alex Grant, alex.grant@greenwich.gov.uk
Alex Wilson, alex.wilson@greenwich.gov.uk

Middle Park and Sutcliffe

Clare Morris, clare.morris@greenwich.gov.uk
Paul Webbewood, paul.webbewood@ntlworld.com
Brian Woodcraft, brian.woodcraft@greenwich.gov.uk

The Council website has more on councillors:- www.greenwich.gov.uk/Greenwich/YourCouncil/YourRepresentatives/Councillors

Manor House Library

Plans

Lewisham Council has scaled back its plans for redeveloping this library. Their latest proposals are on their website, www.lewisham.gov.uk - follow the trail "Leisure and culture" – "Libraries" – "Manor House library" – "The Manor House project". The views of the Users and Friends group are on the "Libraries for Life for Londoners" website www.librarylondon.org - look for "Local Groups", "Lewisham", "Manor House", "Newsletter"

Volunteers

Pat and Peter Richardson (Users & Friends of Manor House Library) saw an advertisement for volunteers in their library. Antonio Rizzo, Resources and Development Librarian, explained that Lewisham is testing the idea at Manor House Library so they can develop a policy on volunteering.

Terrorism Act 2006 and Librarians

While this legislation was going through Parliament we were surprised to learn that it could affect what we are allowed to read. It worried many librarians! Might they fall foul of the Act by issuing a book later deemed to glorify terrorism? Could "Hereward the Wake" or a book on the African National Congress, the Brownshirts, or the IRA put them behind bars? Would a user asking for a book on Silent Killing have to be reported to MI5? Or might they get caught another way - is a book on chemistry likely to be useful in the commission of a terrorist act?

Public debate on these things was swamped by the "90 days detention" issue. However, lobbying, notably by British Library staff, obtained changes helpful to the librarian - it now has to be shown that "he intends" to help or encourage would-be terrorists, or at least that "he is reckless" - and the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) thinks it can live with the outcome.

But some librarians still fear the Act could upset the delicate balance between a good librarian’s desire to make books available to all and the government’s wish to stop would-be terrorists getting knowledge they might misuse. And, some worry that the Act’s vague and complicated language could mean things our MPs never intended when they decided the Bill was a Good Thing. Also, it is possible that the Government will want to bring together this Act and other laws related to it, so all the arguments might have to be gone through again.

From our, the users’, point of view we will need to watch for any local over-reaction to what the law actually requires, maybe leading to more books being turned out of libraries (will the Act be become a sort of Mantra along with "Health ’n’Safety" when the Council is looking for an excuse?). Books are dangerous things!

Internet browsers can find a good deal of comment on this. The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals’ comments are at: www.cilip.org.uk/professionalguidance/terrorismbill.

The Library Suggestion Book

Lewisham libraries have a good suggestion system. Put your suggestion or comment on a form, and a reply is assured. Our Library’s suggestions folder usually lurks somewhere between the computer for the catalogue and the Internet booking machine. Anyone with ideas can join in and the suggestion and reply stay on display in the folder. We might not always like the reply, but we do get one from someone who seems to be responsible for whatever part of the service we want to say something about. And sometimes things do change - one of our members grumbled that it is hard to make the catalogue show just what is in our library, and we now hear that Lewisham’s new system (see "Management System" below) should make this easy.

If you would like something done better, this is your opportunity to say so. Of course, it’s not pleasant to read only grouses, so if you think something’s fine why not say so. And show that we do notice and we do care!

On-Line Services

Most library authorities offer free Internet access to some of the commercially produced "on-line services", but Lewisham provides more than most. All the services Lewisham has subscribed to can be used from connections in Lewisham libraries, and many of them are also available via any Internet computer provided you have a Lewisham library ticket. In either case you have to go through Lewisham Council’s website (http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/) and follow the trail "Leisure and Culture" – "Libraries" – "Library Facilities" – "On-Line Services". Then you get a choice of services that you would normally have to pay for.

Available from any Internet connection

Britannica Online Academic   An online version of the famous encyclopaedia.

Britannica Junior   Britannica for ages 5 – 11.

Britannica Student   Britannica for ages 12 – 18.

Grove Art Online The visual arts from prehistory to today.

Grove Music Online Covers all aspects of music.

Issues Online Articles and statistics on topics of current interest.

News UK 67 national and regional newspapers and magazines back to 1991.

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography 55,000 brief biographies of people who left a mark on British history.

Oxford English Dictionary   The great dictionary of English. From home, use Lewisham’s "OED access" link.

Oxford Reference Online A collection of digital versions of reference books.

Times Digital Archive, 1785 to 1985 The whole newspaper in searchable form.

xreferplus 169 reference books, mainly encyclopaedias and dictionaries.

Available only from an Internet connection in Lewisham libraries

Ancestry Library UK censuses from 1841 to 1901 and lists of births deaths and marriages.

BOPCAS (British Official Publications Current Awareness Service)   Publications from 1995 to today.

Datamonitor Business Information Centre   Companies, industries and countries, and a two-year news archive.

New Library Management System

Lewisham, along with many other libraries, is introducing a new "Library Management System", which involves the catalogue, book reservations, and much more. This means changes to the way things are done.

When it starts operating, probably during October, users will be able to request and renew books etc from the Library PCs and via the Internet (later, the Library and Information Service expect to issue request and overdue notices by email as well as post). The catalogue will look different too – where book suppliers provide the information it will show a summary of the book’s contents and a picture of the book jacket.

Anyone will be able to consult the catalogue either in the library or via the Internet. In addition, library ticket holders will be able to request and renew items electronically using a PIN and a ticket number. You will already have a PIN if you have used the library’s computers but if not you can get it from a library staff member.

For the latest information speak to the library staff and keep an eye on the catalogue terminal in the library or Lewisham’s website (www.Lewisham.gov.uk).

Lewisham’s Library Service Plan, and other documents

Lewisham’s "Library and Information Service Plan 2006 – 07" makes interesting, if at times difficult, reading. Our library has a copy – ask for it at the desk. Internet users can find it at www.lewisham.gov.uk/ - go to the "Libraries" page and under "documents" select "Lewisham library service plan".

Among the points we noticed are:- the rent for our library building is expected to rise, the Audit Commission thinks that "in comparison to the other Inner London boroughs Lewisham’s Library Service is conspicuously poorly resourced", and a commitment to improve the website so that "it reflects the customer mindset rather than corporate structure".

"Library and Information Service Best Value Review 2003/4" and "Public Library Position Statement and Standards Report 2004" are also on Lewisham’s website. The web addresses are: www.lewisham.gov.uk/LeisureAndCulture/Libraries/BestValueReview.htm and www.lewisham.gov.uk/LeisureAndCulture/Libraries/PositionStatement. There isn’t a hard copy of either in the library but our librarian offered to print a copy from the computer should one be wanted.

Lewisham’s "Audited Statement of Accounts 2004/5" is in our library and also on the website: go to http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/ and look for "Council And Democracy", "Council Finance", "Statement Of Accounts". But, be aware that if, like us, you have a slow connection the 136 pages in "PDF" format take a long time to arrive! We could find few references to libraries.

What next?

Your committee will meet soon to consider what we can best do to make sure future developments take account of users’ wishes and to work out how to keep members informed about our library.

Among the issues we have to tackle are the need for more volunteers to help with the work of the group, and a possible future general meeting of BVLUG. If you have any points you would like considered, please send them to:-

Gillian Gadsby, 71 Manor Way, SE3 9XG.

Anne Bennet
on behalf of BVLUG committee

If you are interested in membership of the "Blackheath Village Library Users Group" write to:

Gillian Gadsby, 71 Manor Way, SE3 9XG.

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