In Part I discussed the problem that we cannot
rely on Croydon Councillors to respond quickly to questions, using the issue of
the governance of Fairfield Halls as the example. This Part is about the same
problem with Councillors and a Council contractor, namely Carillion which
manages the Library Service.
On 24 March I discussed in a posting on Croydon
Citizen (http://thecroydoncitizen.com/politics-society/next-croydon-libraries)
what appeared to be the gradual
improvements to the Croydon Library Service following a meeting I attended
between representatives of Carillion and Norbury Residents Associations. At that meeting I handed the former a list of
questions – see below.
Is
it Carillion or CCS?
Labour’s Tim Godfrey took issue with my statement
that CCS was running the contract, and asked me for proof that this was the
case. I have been in lengthy email exchange with him. As the evidence I
provided did not satisfy him I emailed him and Councillor Tim Pollard, the
Cabinet member responsible for the Library Service (30 March), asking them to jointly
find out whether or not Carillion
operates the library contract through its not-for-profit subsidiary CCS and
issue a joint public statement on the matter.
By 8 April I had not had a reply and so I did a
reminder email. It is now 11 April and
not even a holding reply from either of them. No doubt they will explain that
this is due to their being busy in the local election campaign. But the
management of libraries is an election issue and therefore clarity about the
facts is important.
It is to be hoped that the new Council after 22
May will tighten up the rules on Councillors and contractors to require a
speedier response to residents letters
and emails, and thereby improve accountability.
Request
to Carillion
On 24 March I had emailed the Carillion staff who had attended the Norbury meeting
drawing their attention to the Croydon Citizen piece, reminding them that I
looked forward to receiving their reply to the list of questions I had handed
them at the meeting. I also drew their attention to the fact that a decision
had been taken not to purchase an important new book on British anti-racism: Caroline
Bressey. Empire, Race and Politics of
Anti-Caste (Bloomsbury Press. December 2013). I have not had a reply despite a reminder sent
on 2 April. On 26 March I asked them to provide me documentation showing that
CCS was managing the library service for Carillion. I still have not had a
response.
Contrast
with GLL in Wandsworth
This lack of engagement contrasts sharpely with my
experience of dealing with Wandsworth’s library manager GLL, which lost out for
the Croydon bid to JLIS. I received a
full response to concerns I raised with GLL’s Head of Libraries Diana Edmonds.
This is posted on my blog site at http://historyandsocialaction.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/how-has-gll-been-performing-in-managing.html.
Putney Society and the Friends of Putney Library
have now organised a public meeting for 27 May which she will address on
the matters covered by her reply to me and
further developments in the pipeline. The meeting also hopes to discuss the
apparent threat to the library in Roehampton as a result of a Council backed
regeneration scheme. If closure goes ahead it will clearly be taken out of the
contract with GLL. The Putney meeting takes place during the Wandsworth
Heritage Festival (24 May to 8 June) which is co-ordinated by GLL as part of
its responsibility for managing the Heritage Service. Unfortunately I will not
be able to attend the meeting as it unavoidably clashes with one of my talks in
the Festival.
The
Questions Carillion has not yet answered
1.
What
is the catchment population for this Library by age group?
2.
How
many people are registered as users of this Library by age group?
3.
What
is the weekly use of the library in relation to:
(a)
Borrowing
books etc from the adult and children’s sections
(b)
Using
the computers
(c) Other
uses?
4.
How
many staff are there who are
(a)
Full
qualified as librarians
(b)
Training
to be fully qualified librarians
(c) Not
qualified or undergoing training
5.
What
functions do the staff who are no qualified or undergoing training undertake?
6.
How
many staff were TUPEd across and how many are not employed here?
7.
Do
you intend to maintain the current staffing level and the ratio between
qualified, those undergoing training and the other staff?
8.
What
plans have you go to re-stock this library given the paucity of books on the shelves?
9.
Which
local schools use this library on a regular basis?
10.
Which
local schools do not use this library?
11.
When
will you make available for use the upper floor even though it has no lift?
12.
What
events do you plan to organise in this Library this year?
13.
If
individuals or organisations want to hold an evening event in this library in
the evening is it available for letting?
14.
What
is the letting costs for this Library for
(a)
day-time
(b)
evening
events?
15.
Do
you plan to change the opening hours this year?
16.
If
so to what?
17.
Is
there an email system which enables staff to let registered users know about events and new books and services at this Library?
18.
Do
you intend to try and use volunteers?
19.
If
yes what tasks do you envisage volunteers will undertake?
20.
If
you recruit volunteers will you guarantee that their use will not be to justify staffing reductions?
21.
Do
you intend to encourage the formation of a Friends of Norbury Library group?
22.
What
do you see as the role of a Friends group?
23.
How
often would you meet the Friends group to discuss issues and improvements to service?
24.
Would
you support making representations to TfL to place bus stops by the Library on
both sides of the road in order to make it easier for people to come here?
No comments:
Post a Comment