...the new £193m Library of Birmingham, currently under construction at Centenary Square between those other two Brummie palazzi, the Repertory Theatre and the former civic centre called Baskerville House.
Cardiff, Newcastle and Swindon already have new super-libraries, while Liverpool and Manchester's central libraries are undergoing multimillion-pound renovations
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Last week I spoke to [Culture Minister Margaret] Hodge in her office near Trafalgar Square. She told me that running a successful public library in the 21st century is tough. Technological advances and higher expectations of service mean that libraries must, in her glum progressivist phrase, "move with the times to stay part of the times". "I do care passionately about libraries," she says, "but they have to change. The footfall is down and book issues are massively down. Only 14 of 151 local authorities have libraries that offer ebooks."
Hodge has spent the past six months in a consultation process that asks some unsettling questions. What, really, is the point of a public library in the 21st century? How should libraries respond to today's 24/7 culture and the greater availability of cheap books? Why can't that beardy librarian double as a barista?
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She declines to confirm what will be in the review [the review is scheduled for release next week], but among the changes we can expect is an opening up of libraries to volunteers – a move that will upset librarians, unions and campaigners."There's nothing that depresses me more," Hodge says, "than going into a library and being confronted by a computer and someone in authority who isn't going to deliver the citizen-focused services I think should be on offer.
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Other likely reforms include issuing library users with loyalty cards that will reward them with a pair of cinema tickets for every 10 visits and a nationwide lending system."I've long wanted library users to be able to borrow a book in Brent and return it in Birmingham." Opening hours must be liberalised, Hodge says. "I want to be able to go to libraries at 8pm or later. I remember when Borders was open in Islington. You could got there and buy a paperback at 11pm after going to the cinema."
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