Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- Lists of figures and tables
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations and technical terms
- 1 Introduction
- 2 21st-century libraries
- 3 Developing a business case
- 4 Project management
- 5 The design/project team
- 6 Selecting an architect
- 7 Partnership and community engagement
- 8 The design brief
- 9 Design quality
- 10 Space planning and access
- 11 Occupancy and post-occupancy evaluation
- 12 Building libraries for the future – a summary
- Bibliography and further reading
- Appendices
- Index
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
7 - Partnership and community engagement
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 08 June 2018
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- Lists of figures and tables
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations and technical terms
- 1 Introduction
- 2 21st-century libraries
- 3 Developing a business case
- 4 Project management
- 5 The design/project team
- 6 Selecting an architect
- 7 Partnership and community engagement
- 8 The design brief
- 9 Design quality
- 10 Space planning and access
- 11 Occupancy and post-occupancy evaluation
- 12 Building libraries for the future – a summary
- Bibliography and further reading
- Appendices
- Index
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
- Miscellaneous Endmatter
Summary
Increasingly, agencies involved in providing public services are working together. This chapter looks at the emergence of multiagency projects and community engagement, together with some practical issues relating to dual-use libraries.
Libraries manifest a community's intellectual and cultural identity.
(Libris, http://librisdesign.org/docs/index.html)
Different types of library have different user groups. In a university or school library, the users are students and teaching staff. In a public library the users are members of the community ranging from small children to older citizens. In a special library they are members of the organization served by the library. Consideration of users is fundamental to library design, and it is therefore crucial that their views are sought through the design process.
Partnership approaches
In the 21st century there is a general expectation that service provision should be developed via a multi-agency approach in order to secure maximum efficiency and impact. Therefore, in the early stages of planning a new or refurbished library, it is wise to give some thought to how a multiagency approach might be developed. The approach taken will depend on the philosophy of the project, the aim and purpose of the new or refurbished building, the needs of stakeholders and local opportunities.
There are many toolkits and resources available on the internet to assist the development of partnerships. The following factors have frequently been identified in effective partnership work:
■ The agencies involved have a history of working together.
■ The partnership goals address needs and issues that are relevant to all members, and add value to their own activities.
■ The roles of members are complementary, not competitive, and the ways of working are agreed by all.
■ Members support each other, with agreed mechanisms for control and mutual accountability.
■ Senior management of member organizations support the partnership.
■ Members share control and are represented and influential in decisionmaking processes.
■ Effective systems for communication and information sharing are developed.
■ Members have confidence that each of the others will carry out activities to a high standard.
■ Members are able to learn not only from the outputs of the partnership but also from the process itself, e.g. learning new ways of working.
■ Conflicts and problems are viewed as opportunities for learning.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Better by Designan introduction to planning and designing a new library building, pp. 73 - 84Publisher: FacetPrint publication year: 2008