Library Closures

[name removed] made this Freedom of Information request to Enfield Council This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.

The request was refused by Enfield Council.

Dear Enfield Council,
I understand that The Council needs to make £65 million of savings over the next three years.

1. How much money is the library service expected to contribute towards this savings target?

In order to achieve these savings the Council has identified that the numbers of libraries will reduce to just 4 or 6 key branches from the current 16 libraries and the mobile library. Council Libraries are seen by the public as the face of the Council and as part of the on going Enfield 2017 project are defined to be the gateways for the public to access Council services.

2. How will Enfield Council fulfil its Enfield 2017 strategy of using public libraries as gateways to Council services if their is to be a reduction in the number of libraries?

Their is a rumour that if libraries are not going to be closed then a sponsorship scheme will be put in place and volunteers will be used to run 10 libraries that face closure:
3. What companies have been approached to sponsor the libraries if this is the case?
4. How much money is being offered/sought to sponsor the libraries?
5. How will the Council convince volunteers to work in the sponsored libraries when currently volunteers are not coming forward to work in the current environment as part of the current strategy?

6. To see what savings will be achieved by closing libraries can you please supply the running costs of each of the following libraries for the past three years:
Enfield Town
Palmers Green
Edmonton Green
Ordnance Road
Bowes Road
Southgate
Enfield Highway
Ponders End
Winchmore Hill
Enfield Island Village
Oakwood
Bullsmoor
Fore Street
Angel Raynham
Ridge Avenue
Milfield Community Library
Mobile Library

I am happy for the running costs to be estimated from the cost of staffing, power use, and ICT provision. I would also like to see identified which libraries from my list face the possibility of closure or handed over to sponsors to be run by volunteers.

7.How many senior managers posts will be removed in order make significant savings to the library budget?

8. How many front-line staff jobs will be cut and what is the expected saving? I would like this broken down by payment scale (SO1, Sc4, Sc 3 etc...)

I look forward to hearing back from you

Yours faithfully,

[name removed]

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 Response
Dear Sir / Madam

We acknowledge your request for information received on 04/11/2014 09.10
PM

Your request has been forwarded to the appropriate team or service holding
the information and that team will respond to your request and contact you
where required.

If the information you are seeking exists, and we are not prevented from
releasing it by an exemption, the Council aim to provide you with the
information within 20 working days from receipt of your request.

Yours Sincerely
Enfield Council

Dear Sir / Madam

We acknowledge your request for information received on 04/11/2014 09.10
PM

Your request has been forwarded to the appropriate team or service holding
the information and that team will respond to your request and contact you
where required.

If the information you are seeking exists, and we are not prevented from
releasing it by an exemption, the Council aim to provide you with the
information within 20 working days from receipt of your request.

Yours Sincerely
Enfield Council

Thank you for your question. Please take a look at these Answers from our
knowledge base that might answer your question.
The following answers might help you immediately. (Answers open in a
separate window.)
Answer Link: [2]Library Special Needs - What range of services /
facilities are available?
Answer Link: [3]Library Fees and Charges
Answer Link: [4]Library Computers / Internet Access - Hire and Printing
Costs?
Answer Link: [5]Am I able to request a book from the reserves for
collection at another library?
Answer Link: [6]How can a request a specific book / item from the library?

If no Answers are shown this means we do not currently have any
information regarding this subject matter within our knowledge base.
 Discussion Thread
 Customer By Email ([name removed]) 04/11/2014 09.10 PM
Dear Enfield Council,
I understand that The Council needs to make £65 million of savings over
the next three years.

1. How much money is the library service expected to contribute towards
this savings target?

In order to achieve these savings the Council has identified that the
numbers of libraries will reduce to just 4 or 6 key branches from the
current 16 libraries and the mobile library. Council Libraries are seen by
the public as the face of the Council and as part of the on going Enfield
2017 project are defined to be the gateways for the public to access
Council services.

2. How will Enfield Council fulfil its Enfield 2017 strategy of using
public libraries as gateways to Council services if their is to be a
reduction in the number of libraries?

Their is a rumour that if libraries are not going to be closed then a
sponsorship scheme will be put in place and volunteers will be used to run
10 libraries that face closure:
3. What companies have been approached to sponsor the libraries if this is
the case?
4. How much money is being offered/sought to sponsor the libraries?
5. How will the Council convince volunteers to work in the sponsored
libraries when currently volunteers are not coming forward to work in the
current environment as part of the current strategy?

6. To see what savings will be achieved by closing libraries can you
please supply the running costs of each of the following libraries for the
past three years:
Enfield Town
Palmers Green
Edmonton Green
Ordnance Road
Bowes Road
Southgate
Enfield Highway
Ponders End
Winchmore Hill
Enfield Island Village
Oakwood
Bullsmoor
Fore Street
Angel Raynham
Ridge Avenue
Milfield Community Library
Mobile Library

I am happy for the running costs to be estimated from the cost of
staffing, power use, and ICT provision. I would also like to see
identified which libraries from my list face the possibility of closure or
handed over to sponsors to be run by volunteers.

7.How many senior managers posts will be removed in order make significant
savings to the library budget?

8. How many front-line staff jobs will be cut and what is the expected
saving? I would like this broken down by payment scale (SO1, Sc4, Sc 3
etc...)

I look forward to hearing back from you

Yours faithfully,

[name removed]

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 Question Reference No141104-000084
Subject :  Children,Teenagers & Education
Subject Level 2:  Libraries
Date Created:  04/11/2014 09.10 PM
Last Updated:  04/11/2014 09.10 PM
Status:  Correspondence team
 

[---001:004244:36052---]

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Mark Brincat, Enfield Council

Classification: UNCLASSIFIED

Dear Sir or Madam

 

Thank you for your request of 4^th November 2014.

 

Pursuant to Section 8(1)b  Freedom of Information Act,  for a request for
information to be a valid one, the applicant must use his or her real
name, rather than a pseudonym. A request made by an applicant using a
pseudonym is not valid and the public authority would not be obliged to
deal with the request.

 

We believe that the section 8(1)b is applicable in this case and we are
therefore not obliged to respond.  

 

Regards

 

Mark Brincat

Freedom of Information Officer

London Borough of Enfield

 

 

Classification: UNCLASSIFIED

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