We're working with partners to redesign existing face-to-face customer services, to create places where residents can easily access services and get information and advice that both helps them and enables them to help others within their community. This is to help us to create and maintain ‘resilient communities’ at a time of reduced public service budgets and increasing pressure on services due to the changing demographics of the county.

Important elements of resilient communities are the creation and development of community hubs and the provision of advice, information and signposting at an early and preventative stage that supports the health and wellbeing of individuals and communities.

In Shropshire’s market towns our vision is that traditional face-to-face services will be delivered through community enterprises that are already active within those communities. A community enterprise is the same as a social enterprise, ie an organisation trading for social purpose with any profits reinvested rather than going to shareholders. A community enterprise is based in, and provides benefits to, a particular local neighbourhood or community, and is an organisation run for the community. These enterprises are best placed to utilise their links into communities and therefore maximise every contact that is made with them.

This work is also linked to savings, and therefore we're working to ensure that through redesign we find ways to continue to deliver high quality services, at a lower cost, but with a better overall outcome for the individuals and communities.

Over the last year, we, along with key local partners including Enterprise South West Shropshire (ESWS) and South Shropshire Housing Association (SSHA) have been discussing and developing opportunities regarding new ways of delivering and improving the services currently housed in Enterprise House, Bishop’s Castle. This includes the library service.

Shropshire Council is now seeking responses to proposals relating to the future delivery of the library service in Bishops Castle. These proposals are detailed in this consultation document (linked to this page). We want to stress that as no formal decision has yet been made, there is also an opportunity for alternative proposals to be made. The information we receive through the consultation will be used to inform any decision making on the future delivery of the library service and the management of the library building within Enterprise House.

The potential impact of the proposals on library users, particularly those who might be impacted more by any change is being assessed through the completion of an equality and social inclusion impact assessment.

Enterprise House

Enterprise House is located in Station Street in Bishop’s Castle, and is run by Enterprise South West Shropshire, a social enterprise that supports and nurtures a variety of business and community development schemes in the town and surrounding area.

Enterprise House itself provides a range of services, including an IT Centre and training room, business support unit, meeting rooms, equipment hire for local businesses and community groups, and a booking service for the SpArC theatre. There are also business units and offices at the site which are let to local businesses and organisations, including Bishop’s Castle Dial-a-Ride, whose services are run from the site.

The building also hosts a number of Shropshire Council-led services including Bishop’s Castle Library, a Customer First point and registry office.

Bishop’s Castle Library

The library offers the following services:

• free membership for all
• opening times – Monday 10am to 2pm; Tuesday 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 7pm; Friday 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 7pm, Saturday 9.30am to 1pm.
• the lending of adult books, audio books and DVDs
• a children’s library area and range of books for children from age 0 upwards
• a collection of books for teenagers
• a selection of books in large print
• regular exchange of books with other libraries
• request service - obtaining books from other libraries requested by customers
• free access to public computers for library members
• trained staff to issue and return books, answer enquiries, help people to choose books and use computers
• online services on the Library Service website for use 24/7
• regular events such as story times, rhyme times, class visits from local schools, adult and teenage reading groups, author talks and social events in partnership with the Library Friends’ group.

Our preferred proposal for the future delivery of the library service in Bishops Castle is to transfer the responsibility for its day-to-day management to Enterprise South West Shropshire. This would result in the service continuing to be delivered in its current location in Enterprise House with the same opening hours. The library service would continue to provide ‘back office’ support, and the library would be run under an agreed service level agreement between Shropshire Council and Enterprise South West Shropshire.

The proposal includes opening up the space between the library and the IT facility, and introducing facilities for self-service in the library.

The Library Service and Enterprise South West would be jointly committed to providing all the existing library functions with opportunities to develop services. The result of these changes for Bishops Castle would be a robust library service with a secure future.   

Some changes to customer and registrar services offered at Enterprise House are also proposed. Find out more about the proposed changes to the customer service function. There has been a county-wide consultation on the future delivery of registrar services.

The proposals for the future of Bishop’s Castle Library are put forward in this consultation. There are two proposals being put forward, one of which is preferred by Shropshire Council, and you also have the opportunity to put forward alternative proposals of your own, as long as they can be delivered for the same, or a lower budget than the proposals listed in this document.  A set of frequently asked questions has also been produced to help you make your choice of which option to support.

The results of the consultation will be collated, analysed and considered by us, and used to inform any decision on the future delivery of the library service in Bishops Castle.

This period of consultation will run from Monday 20 July to Monday 31 August 2015. 

To take part, please read through the proposals first, and then complete our short survey.

When considering these proposals it will be helpful to bear in mind our vision for community hubs and the role of libraries in the future, and also what our statutory duties to deliver libraries are. These are listed below.

Section 7 of the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 (“the PLMA”) states that the council, as a library authority, has a statutory duty (not a discretionary power) to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service for all persons wishing to make use of it.

The PLMA does not define what is meant by “comprehensive and efficient”. However it does provide that the library authority must make facilities for borrowing books and other materials available to people who live, or work, or are undergoing full-time education in Shropshire. It also provides that in fulfilling the duty to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service, it shall in particular have regard to the desirability of:

• providing facilities for the borrowing of, and reference to, books and other printed matter, pictures, gramophone records, films and other materials in sufficient quantity and quality to meet the general requirements and any special requirement both of adults and children
• encouraging adults and children to make full use of the library service, providing advice as to its use, and making available such bibliographical and other information as may be required
• securing co-operation between the library authority and others exercising public functions within the county.

The options proposed within this document will meet this statutory duty. Other alternative proposals made as part of the consultation would also have to meet this statutory duty.