Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what guidance his Department has issued to local authorities on the criteria for a comprehensive and efficient library service.

Local authorities in England have a statutory duty under the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 (1964 Act) to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service. Under the 1964 Act, the Secretary of State has a duty to superintend, and promote the improvement of, the public library service provided by local authorities in England, and to secure the proper discharge by local authorities of their library authority functions.

The Libraries Taskforce, jointly established by DCMS and the Local Government Association to provide leadership and help to reinvigorate the public library network in England, published a guidance document “Libraries as a statutory service” on GOV.UK in December 2015 to help guide local authorities about the legislative framework for library services.

In addition, information and good practice about library service provision is available to local authorities through the Libraries Taskforce toolkits and regular blogs. Many of these provide innovative ideas and case studies from library services across England to share options and good practice. Furthermore, library authorities considering changing their library service are encouraged to inform DCMS about their proposals prior to public engagement.