became less about transparency, and more about service improvement. It allowed others to go well beyond what we could do internally. Libraries Hacked projects have focussed on showcasing ‘the art of the possible’ and utilising external open data alongside library data. The library data could be as simple as branch locations. Merging those locations with population demographics, high street data, and transportation routes, offers a wealth of opportunities to help citizens find their local library, and to aid in policy and understanding the public library network.
IP: Why is open data important and how can it be used to improve services?
DR: The key benefit of open data is the opportunities that come from wider access and usage of library data. A lot of services don’t have enough time or capacity to utilise the data they hold. Regardless of sector, if you ask any manager whether they feel they do enough with the data they hold, they’d likely admit they don’t. The essential obligation of protecting per- sonal and sensitive information also relies on a mature open data policy. Good data management requires a targeted approach of defining what to keep secure and strictly audited, and what can be made widely available. Recent high profile data breaches in the UK have been from poor data man- agement, where data that should already be publicly available is mixed with sensitive information – causing disastrous mistakes. Open data policies recognise that non-per- sonal data held by libraries should be avail- able to users as readily as staff within the service. And that there is as much, if not greater, opportunity for innovation outside of the service.
IP: Thinking about people working in a library and information man- agement setting, what can data do for them and their services?
DR: In many sectors data has become a direct front-line service to users. Much like in book lending, we need essential library and information skills to help users find and access data and provide context. That should be an opportunity for promoting the value of library and information man- agement.
There are significant opportunities in libraries for co-creation of services – working with users by providing them with data, or with APIs (application program- ming interfaces) to develop the user-facing systems and data services that they need. With more open systems and data, the websites and discovery platforms that libraries offer are unlikely to be the only ways that users will interact with online library services. In the same way that it’s possible for users to post to social media through third-party applications, library
18 INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL September 2023
Library data can be turned into useful demographics.
users should have multiple options for interacting with libraries. I think that’s exciting for services, as it will drive innova- tion, but it can also be daunting. Features like enabling auto-renewal of loans are cur- rently managed by library service policy, but with third-party apps this could be a choice for the user.
IP: What kind of data should we be looking for – how do we know where to find it?
DR: We should take an open by default approach to library data. It’s hard to anticipate what data is going to most use- ful, until someone has had that lightbulb moment to use it in a new and innovative way.
Key strategic areas for libraries like sus- tainability and tackling climate change re- quire certain datasets that should be made widely available. Detailed building energy usage, book loans and transit history can give insights into the carbon footprint of library services, and ways in which we can reduce carbon.
IP: What tips can you give us to make sense of data, and make sure that it is used effectively. Not just by those collecting and collating the data, but also to help us advocate for services and implement changes. What is the role of data visualisations in that?
DR: My biggest tip for data analysis is to approach data with a spirit of curios- ity and let it reveal what questions it can answer. So much of the data work we do is routine, and boring. Reporting on loans per branch, per month, etc. We should allow ourselves to satisfy our own interest and
love of libraries to see where that rabbit hole of curiosity takes us. Library data is so rich and interesting, and there are so many unanswered questions. What genres of fiction get checked out in the morning compared to the afternoon? Is there a difference, and if so, why? I’d love to know if the weather makes a difference to the book someone may choose while browsing. We know about beach reads for the summer, but what about a rainy day? We should also always try to use data to inform (but not drive) our decision making. Questions such as the effective- ness of library overdue fines, and the potential adverse effects, should have been answered by data a long time ago. Aside from anecdotal evidence there is very little published data on overdue fines, and it’s a key part of library policy. Data can be a huge part of advocacy for libraries. Exploring data visually (while providing accessible options) can be a helpful way to get users interested in library data. I love maps – not just for static data visualisations, but digital maps you can explore and play with. We don’t need to explain why libraries are good, we need to get people using librar- ies and hearing about them. We can also engage the people and organisations that make up the wider reading sector. We should be providing reports for authors and publishers to see how their books are doing in libraries, not just every year through PLR pay- ments, but as often as they want them. Find out more and book your Librar- ies Rewired place at https://librariesrewired.
org.uk. IP
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56
