Renewal: transforming
Manchester’s Libraries and
Archives
Nicky Parker
Head of Transformation and Business Improvement
Manchester City Council
Manchester
• City of population of 460,000
• Fastest growing economy outside
London
• City Region status, 2.5 million population
• 23% BME population
• 350,000 students within an hour’s drive
• The Original Modern City
Manchester Libraries
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22 community libraries
Central Library
Library at HMP Manchester
Greater Manchester County Record Office
Manchester Archive Service
24 hour virtual Library
Shared Services across Greater Manchester
and the North West
Overview
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The case for transformation
The transformation journey
Efficiency agenda
Future developments
The case for transformation
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Very few new library developments since 80s
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No capital funding available
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Poor fabric of existing portfolio
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Poor customer and resident satisfaction rates
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High customer expectation vs increased competition
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Poor performance in issues, new members, visits, PC usage
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Poor Audit Commission Inspection – failing service with little
prospect for improvement
Library Transformation
Programme
2005-2006 getting the basics right
2006-2010 growing and changing
2010- now meeting the efficiencies
challenge
wider Council transformation
Getting the basics right
• Vision, values, objectives
• Defining the Library offer
• Investing in our people- staff and
customers
• Performance Management Frameworkdefining the metrics
• Asset Management Plan- Renewal
Visions, values, objectives
• Vision for the Library Service, embedding
it back into the life of the City
• Values- people, place, pride
• Deliver objectives that are important for
the City- health, jobs, learning,
sustainable neighbourhoods, Customer
Investing in staff
• Induction programme for all teams following
new structure
• Team leadership and team development
programme
• Staff led Service Improvement Groups
Investment in Customers
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Review of membership
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Sorted out the Reservations Service
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Meet the neighbours
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Review of Fees and Charges
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Encouraged and acted on Customer Feedback
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Stock Surgeries
Performance Management
Framework
• Developed a PMF with support from The
Audit Commission
• Focused on the main things
• New collection, monitoring and reporting
mechanisms
• Used to improve and promote the service
• Became a key PR tool
Renewal: New Libraries for
Manchester
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Programme of capital investment called Renewal
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Funding from the City Council and innovative partnerships
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Integrated whole City approach
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Co-location strategy: colleges, adult learning centres,
academy schools, supermarkets, leisure centres, children’s
centres, health centres.
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Location: re-siting libraries at the heart of regenerated
communities
Tiered Services
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Central Library
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City Library
City centre, 4,000m2, open 67 hours
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District Library
Co-located, 1,000m2, open 64 hours
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Community Library
Co-located, 450-900m2, open 46 hours
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Outreach Libraries
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Community locations, 50-150m2
Early successes, let’s do more and
seek external investment!
• 11.79% increase in visitor numbers
• 15.8% increase in membership
• 20.4% increase in active members
• 18.8% increase in virtual visits
Moss Side Powerhouse Library
Relocating several
poor, out-dated
facilities with new
District Libraries.
BEFORE …
North City Library
Beswick Library. Before…
Beswick Library
Brooklands Library
Longsight Library
Longsight Library
The Avenue Library & Learning Centre
Growing and changing
• External funding
• Repositioned the library service as
community hubs
• Continue to invest in our customers
• E government. Libraries as Access
Points.
Growing and changing
• Improved access
• New Library offers – health, reading,
children, information, online
• Marketing the service
• Social networking
• New ways of working
• Central Library restoration
External funding
• Strategy to bring in external capital and
revenue
• £10m excluding the capital building programme
• Developed new range of services
• European funding linked to regeneration
• Private and public sector investment
• Government grants linked to their priorities
Libraries as e access points to
other Council services
Computers in libraries
• over 500 computers citywide - the city’s
public hot desking system!
• 37,000 self service bookings made via
Netloan terminals in the year to date
• 546,000 hours and 715,000
sessions
• 11,000 free IT learning sessions delivered
New library offers- linked to
Council priorities
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Health
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McMillan Cancer Service
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Health Information Points
Learning
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Homework centres
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Online learning
Employment
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Patents Clinic- millionaires
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Job surgeries
Access points
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Council and Government online transactions
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Customer Services
Making best use of the web
• 1,810 Facebook Fans
• 3,058 Twitter Followers
• Lively interaction, quick response
• Customers advocate and recommend our services
• Customers create content
• Web traffic driven back to library website
Efficiencies: the current challenge
• MCC has to save £109m in 2011/12 rising
to £170m in 2012/13.
• The Library Service has to save £2.9m
from a budget of £13m in the next 12
months
• Further transformation required 
• Some service reductions 
What’s the Library Service strategy?
• Some reductions in service
• Customer Strategy
- Channel shift to make library efficiencies
- Libraries as Customer Services Centres to
make efficiencies for others
• Regional collaboration
Delivering efficiencies in libraries
• Reduced opening hours
• Voluntary severance scheme for
staff/early retirement offer
• Staffing restructure
• Closure of 2 small part time libraries
• Closure of mobile library service
Efficiencies in libraries through
channel shift
• Face to face
• Phone
• Online transactions, digi TV, Library
Apps
• In-library automation
Channel shift
Data from Socitm's Website Takeup Service:
• 23.8m people across the UK accessed library
information and services through websites in the first
six months of 2010, up from 20.9m in the same six
month period in 2009
• library enquiries (renewals, enquiries about availability
of title, opening times and more) are regularly in the
top three of all web enquiries every month
Savings – channel shift
• Face to face is £8.23 a visit
• Phone is £3.21 a call
• Web is £0.39 a transaction
• Use Libraries as your customer
facing channel to save £ elsewhere
Future developments
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Central Library Development Trust
Neighbourhood management
Collaboration across Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester Archives Partnership
Targeted use of Universal Services
Central Library Development
Trust
A new charity formed to support
additional activities of Manchester
Central Library intended to complement
and add value to Manchester City
Council’s major ongoing commitment to
core services.
Development Trust
• It will initially seek funds to enhance and enrich
the huge transformation project of the Grade II
listed building.
• It will enable the Library to apply for major
grants and enable tax-effective giving as part of
a capital fundraising campaign.
• Trust will seek a number of high level awards
from charitable Trusts and Foundations and
major donations from the burgeoning ranks of
wealthy philanthropists
Neighbourhood management
• Separate strategic management and
operational delivery
• Integrated neighbourhood teams
• Role of libraries as neighbourhood
hubs
• Restructure and downsizing staff
team
Collaborative Options
• Collaboration on procurement and specialist
services (more of what we do now)
• Merge strategic management and specialist staff
• Full merger of services including customer
facing services – no support at AGMA level
• Status quo
GM Archives Partnership
• Better together
• New partnership to ensure high
quality, relevant an economically
sustainable archive and local
studies serevice
• Significant to GM strategy and
sense of place agenda
North West Information Service
• Ask About Business model (14
authorities)
• Digital portal for on-line resources
• Information Services Contact Centre
• Review of printed resources
Challenges
•Local identity
•Role of elected members – political
sovereignty
•Professional judgement
•Harmonisation of service standards
•Alignment of staff terms & conditions
Targeted use of Universal
Services
• Library Development Initiative pilot
• Council looking at how universal services like
libraries can provide a generic offer for targeted
groups
• Would a universal offer for targeted groups
improve outcomes for residents and deliver
savings? Eg social isolation and health
outcomes
• Day centres pilot
One Library Service
Sharing Dividend is possible – but
more to gain in service improvement
and sustainability terms than cashable
savings