WARRINGTON North MP Helen Jones has accused library operator LiveWire of maintaining a “deafening silence” since carrying out its consultation exercise into the controversial review of the town’s library service.
But LiveWire have hit back by denying there has been any period of silence during the consultation period or after it.
They claim they have held more than 20 meetings with the public and are still holding follow-up meetings.
The MP claimed LiveWire were being “disrespectful” to her constituents by refusing to answer questions about the library consultation.
She wants to know who instructed LiveWire to make cuts in the library service and what other proposals were considered.
She said: “I believe the public have a right to know who instructed LiveWire to pursue the disproportionate cuts to our library services and what other options have been considered.
“LiveWire say it was the council – the council refute that and say that
other alternative options could be considered. Three weeks on from asking these questions and LiveWire have yet to respond.
“LiveWire tell my staff that my letter forms part of the ‘consultation’ and will be answered whenever. Utter nonsense. I wrote to the managing director, not as part of the consultation, but on behalf of my constituents with valid questions which need serious consideration and a prompt reply. To seemingly refuse to answer is not acceptable and is disrespectful to the people who elected me to ask those sort of questions on their behalf.
“I am also getting the silent treatment when I raise questions about the accountability of LiveWire. The top management of LiveWire is accountable to their board, but who are they accountable to? The two representatives on the board from the council are accountable to their electorate, but what about the rest?
“Who appointed them and what was the process under which they were appointed and how long do they serve?
“Most importantly, in what way is the board accountable to the public who they are making decisions on behalf of? If people are dissatisfied with any board members, what actions can they take and who adjudicates on any such concerns or complaints?
“They might hope that the sound of silence prevails and difficult questions will go away. That cannot be right.
“Maybe, with regards to managing our libraries, it is time to conclude that LiveWire are not fit for purpose and the service should revert back to council control.
A spokesperson from LiveWire, said: “There is absolutely no question of there being any period of silence from LiveWire during the consultation period or after it ended. We have given members of the public the chance to ask questions and have their say at more than 20 public consultation events and we are, to this day, still attending follow up meetings that have been requested by various groups in the community. We have also written to Helen Jones MP to answer her questions and are open to direct discourse with her if she has any further questions.
“During the course of the consultation, we received a significant number of enquiries and comments. We are currently working very hard to collate this feedback in order to ensure it is included in the final report which will be presented to Warrington Borough Council who will make the final decision on the proposals. “
The spokesperson added: “In regards to how the consultation came about, LiveWire and the council met earlier this year to discuss proposals to modernise the library service. This was with the aim of addressing the decline in library usage and to improve participation and overall efficiency, in light of the austerity-driven financial pressures the council is facing.
“The council asked LiveWire to find £650,000 in savings from the overall management fee, with £300,000 of these savings coming from the Library Service. The council agreed that LiveWire could consult with residents about proposed changes to the library service before any decisions were made.
“Finally, in regards to the accountability of LiveWire’s board. Each board member is subject to a rigorous recruitment process and can serve as a board member for a three year period before they have to be re-elected. The full make up of LiveWire’s board is available publically on the organisation’s website.”
Helen Jones MP
MP’s “deafening silence” claim over libraries review
66 Comments
6 Comments
“The council agreed that LiveWire could consult with residents about proposed changes to the library service before any decisions were made”
Surely that “could” must have been “should”?
Helen Jones is correct, none of my questions to LiveWire have been answered, glad to see they are ignoring an MP as well. Would be good if my MP David Mowat was also challenging LW. Totally agree with the statement “LW are not fit for purpose and the service should revert back to Council control”. It would be a good idea to have someone on the Board with a Library background, even a front line staff member. Why use someone who knows about actual libraries they haven’t so far, the “Modernisation Review” was not written by Library professionals – HR, Leisure Centre Management, Business Managers etc., not a sight of anyone with everyday experience of libraries. No one is championing the Library Service in the LiveWire Management, since 2012 it has been allowed to deteriorate with lack of publicity, halving the book budget, shortening the opening hours etc. Ironically the opposite of what the December 2015 survey revealed. Let us hope that an unbiased report is produced to allow the Council and ultimately the Residents of Warrington, a chance to make decisions based on information, facts and figures which have been sadly lacking in the Consultation Meetings.
It is becoming increasingly clear in my opinion that LiveWire are being used as a political pawn by Helen Jones and her cronies – why can people not see through this?
Sections of the Labour group on Warrington Borough Council and sections of the Warrington North Constituency Labour Party have been at war with each other for years.
They openly stab each other in the back – just ask former deputy leader Mike Hannon, or his wife Kate Hannon..
Warrington Borough Council clearly instructed LiveWire (their tenants) to make cuts/savings and LiveWire are just following the instructions of their landlords.
All these Labour politicians should focus on providing the best service for Warrington – not for their own political aspirations. It is a shame there is no effective opposition in Warrington!
Can we please keep this discussion to the performance or otherwise of LiveWire’s library operations. If you wish to discuss the internecine goings on of the local Labour Party which is quite another matter please start another separate trend.
Mixing ‘n matching views on Helen Jones’ usually not unreasonable comments on local matters has often been used previously to cloud the main thread of discussions.
And before you ask, I am not related to nor do I work for Helen Jones and I am not a member of any Labour Party.
I have no political affiliations, but from personal experience, have found Helen Jones’ comments to be true. As she is a Labour MP and we have a “Labour controlled” Council should they not all be “singing from the same hymn sheet”. Jeremy Corbyn gave his backing to the Art Galleries, Museums and Libraries Demonstration in London on 5th November so as the Leader of their party should they not be “toeing the party line”? Am I being naive to think that they should be united in their support of our local Library Service? LiveWire has a proven track record of evading questions, not giving out relevant facts and “spinning” information to the Residents of Warrington, their competence is in question, nothing to do with politics!
It wasn’t so long ago LiveWire was claiming:
“LiveWire libraries offer a great range of books, audiobooks and multimedia items to loan, free Internet access in every library and knowledgeable standard to assist you. Once you have joined LiveWire as a library user you can use your library card at any of the 11 library sites to access computers, borrow books, download e-books and gain 24/7 access to reference information through the online library catalogue. Many sites offer free adult and young people reading groups, creative writing groups, and new skills sessions, such as basic computer skills or you can even research your family tree;”
and it went on to say
“LiveWire have financially outperformed expectations with the organisation delivering £1million in savings for the local authority before going on to make a £50,000 pre-tax surplus and creating 40 new jobs within the town. This is due to the dedication and hard work of our employees who have been actively encouraged to develop income streams and achieve value for money with suppliers. Resulting in improved financial performance at all sites compared with any previous year.”
But it would seem, save for organising Community Wellbeing events in a few (is that overstating it?) primary schools “to encourage pupils to read” (you have to wonder what the teachers are for) LiveWire has done tangibly little to foster greater public use of our libraries, apart from those in Community Hubs.
Having “Signed 30 year leases and associated sub-leases for all 15 of our facilities (incl. all the libraries)”, why is LiveWire hell bent on closing down all but the Community Hub libraries, when it is clear they alone will not provide a satisfactory library service sufficient for WBC to meet its legal obligations?