Public Libraries in the 21st Century Defining Services and Debating the Future

Public Libraries in the 21st Century presents a comprehensive analysis of the impact of recent policy initiatives directly targeted at public libraries along with broader developments in the public sector environment within which they operate. Key features include: ¢ An exploration of the context within which public libraries are operating and analysis of their role in local and national life; ¢ Examples of best practice in service delivery; ¢ Evaluation of the challenges and opportunities confronting public library managers; ¢ Wide ranging coverage, including information from published and unpublished sources, supplemented by interviews with key stakeholders in the public library sector. The book provides a unique and thorough guide to the contemporary discourses surrounding issues of identity, social purpose, value and strategy facing the public library service.

Part I The Environment; Chapter 1 Setting the Scene; Chapter 2 The Local Authority Context; Chapter 3 National Agendas; Chapter 4 Public Library Users; Chapter 5 Public Library Staff; Part II Service Development; Chapter 6 The People’s Network; Chapter 7 Regenerating Communities; Chapter 8 Building Communities; Chapter 9 Libraries and Learning; Chapter 10 Books and Reading; Chapter 11 Discourses of Public Library Futures;

Anne Goulding is Reader in Information Services Management in the Department of Information Science, Loughborough University, UK. Her research and teaching interests focus on the management of libraries and information services, particularly public libraries.