Issue - meetings

To consider and determine the future of Library Service Provision in Kent.

(Item 5)

(Ms A Slaven, Head of Libraries and Archives, and Mr J Pearson, Service Improvement Programme Manager, were present for this item.)

(1)  Cabinet received a report which highlighted the findings of the recent consultation and parallel work streams into a proposed delivery model of a charitable trust for the Libraries, Registration and Archives (LRA) service.

(2)  Mr Hill, Cabinet Member for Community Services, introduced the report and in particular he referred to the following:

• The public consultation on the preferred option of future service delivery by a charitable trust, which included the consideration of a petition.
• He confirmed that there was no intention to reduce services and that the County Council would retain statutory responsibility for these services. 
• There had been discussions with the General Registration Office (GRO) in relation to externalisation of the registration service and officers had been advised that this would require new primary legislation.
• The option of splitting the libraries/archives service from the registration service had been considered but it had been concluded that this would not be the most efficient way forward as it would impact adversely upon staff moral and would affect the stability of all three services.
• Now that the new government was in place, conversations were taking place with the GRO in relation to introducing new primary legislation as soon as possible and for Kent to be granted early pilot status.
• Therefore it was proposed that the Libraries, Archives and Registration service be kept in house while work to facilitate the externalisation of the registration service continued.

(3)  It was RESOLVED that