The provision of European information by public libraries in the UK
| Published date | 01 February 1997 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/01435129710157725 |
| Pages | 7-41 |
| Date | 01 February 1997 |
| Author | Rita Marcella,Graeme Baxter,Susan Parker |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science |
The development of the Public
Information Relay
In the early 1990s, during the lengthy and
heated debate over the ratification of the
Maastricht Treaty, the European Commission
(EC) became increasingly aware of a commu-
nication gap between itself and the European
public. To address this issue, the EC set up a
working group, chaired by Willy De Clercq,
to examine how the public could be better
informed about the activities of the Commis-
sion. The group’s final report[1], published in
March 1993, acknowledged the conclusions
of the earlier Sutherland Report[2], which
found that the major obstacle to achieving
consensus between Brussels and the Euro-
pean public lay less in the lack of information
than in the lack of transparency with which
existing information was disseminated to the
individual (see also[3]). The De Clercq report
recommended that information networks be
set up to ensure that every European citizen
could have direct access to information on the
European Union (EU).
The appearance of the De Clerq report
coincided with a National Consultative Con-
ference, organized by the EC’s London Office
at Stoke Rochford in January 1993. This
conference, entitled Britain in Europe – Fill-
ing the Information Gap Together[4], assem-
bled a wide variety of information providers
who recognized that if the communication
gap between the EC and the British public
was to be bridged, then a more decentralized
approach to EU information provision was
necessary. (Two subsequent conferences,
Stoke Rochford II[5] and III[6], have been
held but did not address the PIR specifically.)
The report also coincided with the publica-
tion, in January 1993, of a report on the effec-
tiveness of the EC’s UK Regional Information
Campaign[7], which had consisted of a
nation-wide programme of talks and semi-
nars, together with a mobile information unit
which had toured the UK in an effort to
generate interest in Europe among the British
public. The report – Communicating Europe
1988-1992: A Five Year Programme of Local
Initiatives – concluded that the campaign,
which had often involved public libraries, had
been very successful, with around 47,000
people visiting the Mobile Unit over the five
years.
Later that year, the EC’s London Office
commissioned a Gallup poll which examined
7
Library Management
Volume 18 · Number 1 · 1997 · pp. 7–41
© MCB University Press · ISSN 0143-5124
The provision of
European information
by public libraries in
the UK
Rita Marcella
Graeme Baxter and
Susan Parker
The authors
Rita Marcella is Senor Lecturer and Course Leader for the
MSc in Information Analysis, School of Information and
Media, the Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, UK.
Graeme Baxter is a Research Assistant, School of Infor-
mation and Media, the Robert Gordon University,
Aberdeen, UK and Graduate of the School.
Susan Parkeris a PhD Research Student at the Robert
Gordon University, investigating European information
policy development and its implementation in the UK.
Abstract
Describes a British Library Research and Innovation
Centre-funded project to investigate the provision of
European information in public libraries in the UK, via the
establishment of the Public Information Relay (PIR), a
European Commission initiative to provide information
about the European Union to the general public. Discusses
the background to the PIR and the literature to date.
Describes the project methodology and discusses the
major findings of the project. The project found that
libraries were making very positive efforts to develop their
European information services, but that there were
concerns about the future development and resourcing of
membership of the Relay. While the support of the Euro-
pean Commission was seen as valuable by respondents,
the majority of libraries served a wider community of need
than was envisaged by the remit of the PIR, in particular
being heavily used for educational and business related
purposes.
the European information needs of the British
public. It revealed that 72 per cent of those
questioned felt that they would like to be
better informed about the impact of EU
policies in their region; and that 70 per cent
believed that their local library should be
making more effort to inform the general
public about European matters[8]. (Similar
results were obtained from subsequent polls
carried out in 1994[9,10] and 1995[11]).
Prompted by these developments, the
Local Government International Bureau
(LGIB), which recognized the significance of
public libraries in any national information
network, brought together the library advisers
to the UK local authority associations and the
London Office of the EC at a meeting in
October 1993. Consequently, the Federation
of Local Authority Chief Librarians
(FOLACL), which then represented the
principal library officers in local authorities in
England and Wales, convened a seminar, in
December 1993, for almost 30 of the key
library authorities in the UK. At this seminar
it became clear that there was considerable
support for the principle of improved public
access to European information. Indeed,
many felt that this was an important part of
the statutory responsibility of every library
authority.
As a result of this positive response, the
London Office of the EC, together with
FOLACL, arranged a major conference in
Manchester, in May 1994. At this conference
– Communicating Europe through Public
Libraries[12] – representatives of 44 library
authorities met to discuss the proposed cre-
ation of a co-ordinated relay which would
bring EU information closer to the man and
woman in the street. Delegates acknowledged
that public libraries were particularly well
placed to provide such a service. Peter
Beauchamp, the chief library adviser of the
Department of National Heritage (quoted in
a speech by Giancarlo Pau at the Public
Libraries Conference in York on 28 Septem-
ber 1994), pointed out:
There is no-one better placed than the public
library network to take on the role of dissemi-
nating information about the EU and its activi-
ties. This is the role that public libraries must
take up as part of their comprehensive and
efficient provision.
Since then, membership of the Public Infor-
mation Relay has grown dramatically. Indeed,
at the outset of this Project, in July 1995, 154
of the then 167 UK library authorities had
joined. Participating public libraries are enti-
tled to receive:
• free copies of basic texts on the EU;
• a 50 per cent discount on items produced
by the Office for Official Publications of the
European Communities (EUR-OP);
• a 50 per cent discount on access to certain
EU databases;
• a stock of hand-out material produced by
the EC;
• a list of suggested basic publications; and
• training in the use and maintenance of a
European collection.
In return, Relay members are required to
accept certain obligations:
• to continue to bear the costs of staff, over-
heads and the necessary discounted publi-
cations;
• to make official documents and publica-
tions of the European Union available to
the general public;
• to establish links and co-operate with local
members of other sectorally established
relays (i.e. European Documentation
Centres, European Information Centres,
Carrefours etc.);
• to report back on activities and feedback
from information users on an annual basis;
and
• to publicize the existence of the Relay by
using a designated logo adopted by
FOLACL, and through various local
events.
In order to provide the EC with specialist
advice on the practical aspects of implement-
ing the PIR, FOLACL (and its successor, the
Society of Chief Librarians in England and
Wales) has established an expert group, com-
prising a number of public library representa-
tives, and a sub-group on training. In
Scotland, the lack of a FOLACL presence has
led the Scottish public library community to
form its own PIR user group consisting of
representatives of public library authorities,
the Scottish Library and Information Council
(SLIC) and the EC Representation in Scot-
land. In Northern Ireland, Relay matters are
dealt with within existing structures, generally
at the regular meetings of the chief librarians
and at the Northern Ireland Reference
Forum.
Further support for PIR members is pro-
vided by the EC-sponsored National Coordi-
nating Committee (NCC) of the UK Network
8
The provision of European information by public libraries
Rita Marcella, Graeme Baxter and Susan Parker
Library Management
Volume 18 · Number 1 · 1997 · 7–41
of European Relays. Officially launched at the
First Annual Conference of the UK Network
of European Relays in Birmingham in January
1995[13,14], the NCC includes representa-
tives from each of the existing relays – the
PIR, European Documentation Centres
(EDCs), European Information Centres
(EICs), the LGIB, the European Information
Association (EIA), the CBI, the TUC, and
the Law Society – as well as representatives
from the education sector, the EC and the
UK Government. The NCC is to organize
training for all members of the relay network
and will stimulate and co-ordinate cross-relay
contacts, at a national, regional and local
level. It also aims to ensure that the needs and
interests of the various sectors of European
information users are taken into consideration
in future decisions.
The research project
The project, described in the present paper,
funded by the British Library Research and
Innovation Centre, and carried out by the
School of Information and Media at the
Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen,
investigates the provision of EU information
by public libraries throughout the UK, and in
particular the implementation of the Public
Information Relay. It has taken place at a
relatively early stage in the PIR’s develop-
ment, when feedback and critical comment
received from practitioners will be valuable
and have a positive influence on the future
development of the Relay.
The main aims and objectives of the Pro-
ject are as follows:
Aims
These are:
• to investigate the present provision of EU
information in public libraries in the UK;
• to identify the most effective method of
supplying EU information in public
libraries;
• to investigate levels of user need for EU
information.
Objectives
These are:
• to provide a review of the types of Euro-
pean information services in public
libraries;
• to identify the extent of actual and poten-
tial need for European information
amongst users;
• to identify best practice for the provision of
European information in public libraries;
• to develop a method of investigating users’
perceptions of and response to European
information.
Project methodology
The project methodology consisted of four
elements: a postal survey of all public library
authorities in the UK; case study visits to
eight library services; a user survey; and a
seminar on the project and its results.
Survey methodology
A questionnaire-based survey of all public
library authorities in the UK participating in
the PIR was carried out, to elicit information
on the levels of European information provi-
sion (both prior to and since joining the
Relay), the manner in which the PIR service
was being implemented, and any potential
problems and solutions.
The questionnaire was tested on five pro-
fessionals expert on European information
provision in other sectors. As the question-
naire was 14 pages long, most of the com-
ments received during this pilot stage related
to its length; however, it should be pointed
out that the questions themselves were all
deemed wholly pertinent, and no suggestions
as to how the questionnaire might be short-
ened were received. However, while all com-
ments were carefully considered, only one or
two minor amendments were required and the
questionnaire remained virtually unchanged
(see Appendix).
The questionnaires were distributed to all
154 PIR members. An excellent response rate
of 76 per cent (i.e. 117 out of 154) was
obtained. The high level of response suggests
that initial fears over the length of the ques-
tionnaire were unfounded, and that the UK
public library community was eager to voice
its opinions and concerns regarding the PIR.
The project team also designed a separate
and considerably shorter questionnaire aimed
at those 13 UK library authorities who had
not so far joined the Relay. This survey
focused on current levels of European infor-
mation provision, and contained a brief sec-
tion which questioned the likelihood of each
authority eventually joining the Relay. Seven
of the 13 authorities responded.
9
The provision of European information by public libraries
Rita Marcella, Graeme Baxter and Susan Parker
Library Management
Volume 18 · Number 1 · 1997 · 7–41
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