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IN TRYING TO DEMOCRATISE UK LIBRARIES, FUNDAMENTAL PROVISIONS HAVE BEEN NEGLECTED, INCLUDING BOOKS. A RECENT REDESIGN OF THE WHITE CHAPEL IDEA STORE IS A HOPEFUL BEACON, SAYS TIM COATES
For public libraries the last ten years have been an unpleasant descent. Plagued not just by political correctness but by political theorists and inept management at local and national level, the public has largely lost interest in them. That is not because they are not needed - huge demonstrations of anger are provoked when there are proposed library closures in the smallest places - but because people no longer trust those responsible to provide what is the simplest of all ideas.
The market research is consistent. Libraries should be pleasant, warm, safe, well lit, calm, well furnished to sit and stay, dignified, quiet and clean. They should be well stocked with an abundance of reading material for information, for pleasure, for study, for serendipity. They should be open like shops are now open most of the time, and the staff should be friendly and able to answer questions. There is a clear use for large 'central' libraries, with extensive and local collections, both current and of historical interest, embracing all kinds of cultures and arts. And there is a separate call for small libraries accessible...