HM Prison Service
Headquarters
Abell House
John Islip Street
London SW1P 4LH
Telephone 071-217 3000
Direct line 071-217

Mr R Bowes
ASLIB
Public Library Review Secretariat
The Association for Information management
Information House
20-24 Old Street
LONDON EC1V 9AP

30 June 1994

Dear Mr Bowes

PUBLIC LIBRARY REVIEW

I refer to your letter of 19 May addressed to Mr Pearson.

I attach a paper which may be of interest to you as part of the review you are conducting on behalf of the Department of National Heritage.

cc Mr Blunt

Yours sincerely

I G BENSON

Chief Education

Introduction

1. The Prison and Young Offenders Institution Rules 1988, which are Statutory Instruments made under the Prison Act 1952, place on the Home Secretary the responsibility for ensuring that each Prison Service Establishment has a library, and that inmates of those establishments have facilities to use and exchange books.

2 . Similarly, under the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964, library authorities in England and Wales have a statutory duty to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service for all those whose residence or place of work is within their library area or who are undergoing full-time education within that area.

3 . Since the early 1940s, the Home Secretary has discharged his responsibility by making arrangements with the respective Public Library Authorities (PLAS) for the provision of a specified service on a nationally agreed recharge basis.

4. In 1993, each prison Governor signed a three year service level agreement with the PLA for the provision of library services.

5 . The policy of the Prison Service is that no person in custody should, by that fact, be deprived of access to a full range of library materials and that these should be provided by the PLA. We believe strongly in the principle that the prison library should be regarded as a branch of the public library service.

6. The current arrangements are based on the following considerations:

- The Prison Service does not have the necessary expertise or skills to operate its own library service.

- Each prison establishment aims to integrate itself, as far as possible, with the local community.

- There is already a well developed network of public library services throughout England and Wales and, therefore, it is not appropriate for the Prison Service to set up its own library system.

- Public libraries have major resources to satisfy a wide range of reading requirements and to support the comprehensive education and training programmes in each prison.

- Public libraries are able to provide information services to prisoners which meet an extensive range of needs.

- Large stocks of books and non-book material held by public libraries, together with a programme of continual revision, ensure that fresh and relevant material is always available.

- Items which are not immediately available can be obtained via the public library's membership of the Regional Library Bureaux.

- Public libraries have a range of professional expertise to offer prison libraries and can provide career opportunities to staff engaged in prison library work.

- Public libraries have well developed supply systems for the acquisition of new materials in the most economical and effective way.

7. Thus, it can be seen that the Prison Service is dependent upon the Public Library Authorities for the provision of an on- site library service to prisoners.

8 . The funding of the PLA service to prisons is based on an agreed capitation formula for the provision of materials and off- site staff and management time. Additional funding is made available for the on-site provision of professional staff and for equipment (including on-line and stand alone computer systems). No charge is made to inmates for using the prison library service.

'What services should form the free 'core' of public library provision across the country?'

9. As far as library services are concerned, we believe that prisoners should continue to receive a books and information service which is free. This recognises the fact that prisoners are a very disadvantaged group in that most of them do not have the resources to pay for this service. It is estimated that half of them have difficulty with the Basic Skills (reading) and the Prison Service makes provision which encourage inmates to correct this deficiency.

10. The Prison Service provides significant and comprehensive education and training opportunities. The prison library service is vital in supporting this provision which is, in turn, consistent with the Prison Service policy of providing constructive regimes which allow inmates to purposefully use their time during custody which will assist them on release.

11 . 'On what type of new service should we concentrate our attention? To what extent could such services build on librarians' skills, on electronic media, systems and databases and on the library as a centre of community activity? Are there any initiatives or ventures we should know about?'

12. The Prison Service believes that the development of its libraries should be congruent with developments in the public sector. The vast majority of inmates are in prison for short periods of time and it is essential that they become used to a system 'inside' that they will find in their home community. The Prison Service has, therefore, embarked on a programme of computerising prison libraries (in conjunction with PLAS), in order that inmates may select and order materials which are held throughout the PLA rather than from only those held in the prison library.

13. Currently, a small number of establishments have been provided with the technology to access a range of information databases, including job vacancies in an inmates' home location.

14. Attempts are made in some prison libraries to adopt a community centre approach through the introduction of writer-in- residence groups; play reading; exhibitions; prison magazines produced by library staff and ethnic minority cultural events.

'How do you see future priorities for libraries?'

15. Public libraries must continue to develop their services to a range of disadvantaged client groups, and this is almost certainly going to mean a gradual change in emphasis towards taking services to such groups rather than expecting them to come to the library. Inmates of establishments are, of course, one such disadvantaged group who could not, because of security considerations, use the public library delivery points.

'What factors and considerations should we allow for in setting a framework for local choice?'

16. In paragraphs 1 .3 and 1 .4, we indicated that each Prison Governor has recently signed a three year service level agreement with the providing PLA. The agreement reflects the local needs of individual establishments but within a nationally agreed framework of standards and funding. Details of the agreements, standards and funding may be found in the enclosed "Prison Libraries - Roles and Responsibilities" report. (more copies of this publication can be made available if required).

17. Thus, it can be seen that the Prison Service, with the full agreement of the Association of County Councils; Association of Metropolitan Authorities and The Library Association are quite content with the present arrangements whereby we have a proven national framework within which Governors and PLAs have considerable latitude to exercise local choice on delivery of services.

18. Currently, prison Governors do not have the discretion to purchase library services from suppliers other than the PLA for the reasons stated in paragraphs 1.1-1.9.

'On what basis, and from which sources should Public libraries obtain their future funding?'

19. Public libraries provide services to prisons on a recharge basis ie, a nationally agreed capitation fee, plus payments for other services (lost books; computers; staff; inter library subscriptions for ethnic minority material etc). We regard this as an excellent funding arrangement and would not wish to see this changed.

'What approaches and steps should we consider or recommend on the marketing of existing and new public library services in the future'.

20. The purpose of providing a prison library service through PLAs is to ensure that the quality/range of our service is congruent with that which is available to the general public. It also recognises that the body of experience in providing library services is located in Local Authorities and not in the Prison Service. The present arrangements ensure that new approaches - marketing etc, are extended to prisons.

21 . It is relatively easy to market the prison library in a 'confined' society. The marketing is done through the induction system; posters in the living accommodation and through customer surveys. Much time is also spent by library staff visiting inmates in their 'homes' (cells) and in places of work. Teachers and instructors also encourage inmates to use the library. The public library service could, perhaps, learn much from the prison library about marketing the library service because of the captive audience' nature of our clientele.

'How can public libraries best address the special needs of particular groups - actual and potential?'

22. Public libraries already accept that prisoners are a particular group with special needs - special in terms of confinement (not able to visit a public library); inability to pay for a service; poor literacy levels; poor social skills; lack of ability to constructively use their leisure time; poor education etc.

23 . Prisoners readily admit that they very seldom used the public library service before sentence because libraries and librarians do not fully comprehend some of the deficiencies described in 7.1.1 and, therefore, libraries, for this group of people, are distinctly unfriendly.

24. In order to attract people with these deficiencies, there has to be three stages:

(a) Public library staff need to understand and accept that large numbers of people have some/all of these deficiencies and be given appropriate skills to deal with disadvantaged people.

(b) The marketing and publicity approach of PLAs needs to recognise that this group is large and it should adopt appropriate strategies to interest members of this group in wanting to join a library.

(c) The ambience; layout; shelf guiding and the approach of staff within the public library should become more user friendly.

25. Public library staff who work in Prison libraries and the Prison Officer Librarians have much expertise to offer to their counterparts in the public system in the treatment of this group and this could be made available if required.

26. I should be happy to submit further evidence and to comment on your draft report later in the year.