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CILIPS Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals in Scotland
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Advocacy Evidence

Blue backdrop with a white circle in the middle. Within the white circle it reads, 'CILIPS advocacy evidence.' With a purple and blue hand holding a stack of books and a library card.

Why Libraries are Essential

  • Well used – Libraries in Scotland are more popular than the cinema and football combined, are used by millions and have seen usage and demand increase in the past decade. The library (including mobile and online) was the most frequently visited cultural event or place in 2022 – 16% of adults visited a library at least once a week, and over one third of adults visited at least once a month (35%).
  • Literacy – Libraries play an essential role in increasing literacy skills, with over 1 in 4 adults in Scotland likely to face challenges related to reading, writing and numbers, and reading for pleasure has been proven to improve the mental health of young people. It is estimated that ‘the average worker in the UK with very low literacy will earn approximately 7.1% less than if they had a basic level of literacy’.
  • Reading for pleasure – Reading for pleasure was the most popular cultural activity in 2022 and 64% of adults participated in reading books, poetry or graphic novels or comics for pleasure. A UK- survey found that people who read for just 30 minutes a week were 18% more likely to report relatively high self-esteem and greater life satisfaction, and non-readers were 28% more likely to report feelings of depression.
  • Return on investment and economic growth Independent research commissioned by Suffolk Libraries shows that libraries generate £41 million worth of social value, translating to at least £6 for every £1 invested, as well as saving NHS services  £542,000 annually, as well as supporting economic growth. UK library research has found that a branch library typically provides £1 million in value each year.
  • Supporting the NHS – Library engagement saves the NHS £1.32 per person per year. Research found that being a regular library user is associated with a 1.4% increase in the likelihood of reporting good general health. Based on reductions in GP visits caused by this improvement in health, it is predicted the medical cost savings associated with library engagement at £1.32 per person per year. In England, this is an estimated average cost saving of £27.5 million per year and the equivalent saving in Scotland would work out at £3.2m per year.
  • Young people – Children with regular access to books benefit from increased opportunities to enjoy stories from an early age, and Bookbug songs, rhymes and stories also help children to develop the skills they need to flourish later in life.
  • Digital inclusion – Libraries provide vital facilities and training to improve digital inclusion, with the current digital skills gap costing the UK up to £63 billion a year.
  • Climate change  – Libraries are all about reuse and have been producing impactful sustainability projects to help educate their users.
  • Physical over digital – Research confirms that the public see digital services as ‘no substitute’ for physical library spaces, with CIPFA’s library survey also revealing that in-person visits to libraries increased by 68% since the pandemic.
  • Reducing Loneliness – Libraries are key to reducing social isolation. UK research found that 95% of people who are blind or partially sighted read (through an audiobook, or another technology) at least once a week to alleviate feelings of loneliness and isolation. It also highlighted that there will be 7 million lonely people over-60 by 2030 and that loneliness among older people will cost almost £2 billion by 2030.
  • Life changing – Our recent campaign with CILIP UK gathered over 180 stories of the many ways Libraries Change Lives.
  • Trust – Librarians are amongst the most trusted professions in the UK,
  • Quality of life – In the Scottish Library and Information Council’s 2023 Public Library Survey, over 93% agreed that using the library improves their quality of life.
  • Physical over digital – Research confirms that the public see digital services as ‘no substitute’ for physical library spaces, with CIPFA’s library survey also revealing that in-person visits to libraries increased by 68% since the pandemic.
  • Reducing Loneliness – Libraries are key to reducing social isolation. UK research found that 95% of people who are blind or partially sighted read (through an audiobook, or another technology) at least once a week to alleviate feelings of loneliness and isolation. It also highlighted that there will be 7 million lonely people over-60 by 2030 and that loneliness among older people will cost almost £2 billion by 2030.
  • Essential – While undertaking Reading in Scotland research (2022), Scottish Book Trust highlighted the stories of hundreds of people who rely on and love their local library. 75% of their panel used the library to get print books for themselves and 94% of parents used the library to get print books for their children.
  • Reducing child poverty – Every Child a Library Member shows that where children use libraries and are read to regularly before attending school, they achieve better attainment and ultimately better economic benefits in their adult years. A study undertaken for the Department of Work and Pensions demonstrated that being read to at age five is an ‘important protective factor against poverty at age 30’. 2 in 5 (43.4%) children and young people aged 8 to 18 in Scotland said that they enjoy reading in their spare time. However nearly 1 in 10 (9.5%) children and young people aged 8 to 18 in Scotland said they did not have a book of their own at home in 2023.
  • Skills development –Children with regular access to books benefit from increased opportunities to enjoy stories from an early age and Bookbug songs, rhymes and stories also help children to develop the skills they need to flourish later in life.
  • Health and Wellbeing – Libraries’ impact on people’s wellbeing, mental health, social isolation or feelings of loneliness means that they make an important contribution towards improving the health and wellbeing of the Scottish population.
  • Raising Attainment – School libraries play a key role in raising attainment, and children and young people who use the school library have better levels of reading enjoyment, reading for pleasure, reading confidence, writing for pleasure, writing confidence, and reading attainment than those who do not. The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions state that ‘well-trained and motivated full-time school librarians are key to higher student reading scores and multiple literacies’.
  • Reading for Pleasure and attainment‘Children who read for pleasure simply do better in life’ and they have a better sense of well-being and levels of attainment, in all subjects.
  • Learning environments – School librarians work in partnership with teachers in delivering the curriculum and create a safe, supportive, inclusive and sustainable learning environment where all pupils have equitable access to learning resources, including those integral to the National Approach to LGBT Inclusive Education.
  • Intellectual Freedom – School librarians are also unparalleled experts in matters of information and media literacy, and intellectual freedom. With the rise of book banning requests affecting schools, it is more vital than ever that professional, supported school librarians remain in place.

The current picture

  • Underfunded – library funding has been cut by 30% even as annual visitor numbers increased by over 40%.
  • Closures – Scotland has lost 73 libraries since 2013/14. CIPFA data showed that there were 541 library branches in Scotland in 2013/14 (609 including mobile libraries), SLIC data suggests that there are 468 libraries by the end of 2023/2024. This is a decrease of 73 libraries, or 13.5%, over the ten-year period.
  • Staffing – Library staff decreased by nearly a quarter (24.6%) in Scotland between 2012-13 and 2022-23. In 2012/23, CIPFA data highlighted there were 2,483.7 FTE Library staff posts. In 2022/23, SLIC data suggests that this figure had reduced to 1,872 FTE posts. This is a loss of 611.7 FTE staff (24.6%) over the 10-year period.
  • Opening Hours – Library opening hours in Scotland have decreased by 13%, on average, between pre-COVID library opening hours and opening hours in 2023.
  • Concerns – A recent report suggests that 44% of local authorities expect library service levels to be reduced in next 3 years.
  • School Libraries – Findings from Great School Libraries 2023 report illustrate that nearly a quarter of schools in Scotland do not have a school library space, and two-thirds of school libraries in Scotland have no library budget at all. A 2024 Scottish Book Trust Survey found that Scotland now has more than a quarter fewer schools with a dedicated librarian than the UK as a whole 32% versus 41%. Ten years of service reductions in Scotland have left some local authorities with no librarians and many with one librarian serving between two or more schools. A CILIPS Freedom of Information enquiry evidences a mixed picture of provision from early last year.
 

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