The Post-Aldous Library Service is Terra Incognita, made the more nerve-wracking by the difficult times we find ourselves in. Whichever government is in power in the summer the council will still be skint; will still be closing down services; and will still be looking to save money, however wastefully. We're used to having the Library Service's budgets raided to pay for shortfalls elsewhere in the organisation, it's happened every year for a generation, but all the indications are that this time we're looking at serious cuts rather than trimmings-off.
We've been rather protected in the past by the fact of T.Aldous. While he hasn't been held in high regard within the council he has done a good job of attritional warfare over the years. On at least three occasions I know that Assistant Directors have approached the Library Service with a view to throwing the baby out with the bathwater and have given up, having had their heads completely done in by a mixture of irrational nit-picking and quite astute politicking. Unfortunately, this isn't a precision tool and collateral damage isn't unknown: Harry Presto was generally neutral-to-favourable about the Library Service but tried not to have anything to do with it if he could help it; Warner is an excellent departmental head but lately seems to have given up on the service in despair. This does us no good.
So the Post-Aldous Library Service is going to be dangerously interesting. If we ever get to see it...
9 comments:
I hope it works out okay for you mate. We're directly affected by cuts in library budgets (mainly at universities but they're feeling the pinch too) so I feel your pain...
Anything to do with councils these days seem to be doomed.
Squirrel: ta, mate. The mad thing is that I can see all sorts of possibilities for positive outcomes, I just don't have any faith in our achieving them.
The unis were close to the bone even before the rug was pulled over the weekend. Tricky for them.
Pat: sadly, yes. They're easy whipping boys for Westminster politicians. If your local council spent money the way the Palace of Westminster does...
I shall keep my fingers crossed for you that it all works out.
Doesn't T.Aldous have any children? What you need here is a dynasty (cf. Nehru/Gandhi, Bush, House of Habsburg...)
I'm guessing you're in the U.K.?
It's kind of depressing to know that even outside of the United States, the monies dedicated to literature are often the first to be cut and the last to be allocated.
Happy Frog & I: ta!
Gadjo: if ever there was an argument for eugenics...
Hello and welcome BrightenedBoy! Yes, we're in the U.K. We're past masters at cuts in the budget, we've been doing it for forty years!
So short-sighted when politicians at whatever level, in whatever way, make information/education less accessible.
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