This site's design is only visible in a graphical browser that supports web standards, but its content is accessible to any browser or Internet device.

mmu | cerlim

VITAL > Final Report: Results from the test implementations
or use the sitemap
CONTENTS

5. Results from the test implementations

5.1 Introduction

In presenting the results obtained during the VITAL project it is important to emphasise that they derive from a trial application of the developing methodology. Although initial piloting had taken place, the implementation of the methodologies was intended to provide feedback to enable them to be refined and clarified: it was not the roll-out of a finished product. Nevertheless the results were real: they were not simply a pilot exercise, but took significant samples of users in each authority and conducted data gathering and analysis rigorously. Thus the three participating library authorities surveyed their users and non-users systematically and gathered data which proved of immediate value to them.

The purpose of this section is to present a summary of that data, and in so doing to demonstrate to a broader audience that evidence of both the value and the impact of these services is available. At this stage we would suggest that the evidence presented here should be treated as indicative of value and impact, not as a final or definitive statement.

5.2 Library profiles

The first stage of the methodology (see the Workbook for details) involved the collection of baseline data to provide a profile of the library authority and its services. It is important that results are read in the context of the profile: for example, it tells the reader about the extent of ICT provision and, to give one example, whether charges are made for access to the Internet. We did not attempt to prescribe the exact format for baseline reports, believing that it was better to allow the staff concerned to describe their library services, and their context, in their own way. We did, however, provide headings to indicate the scope of the profile and the areas it should cover: these are set out in the Workbook. There was, of course, discussion of the profiles which were produced and some modifications were made to clarify aspects of the services. The profiles developed for Birmingham, Cheshire and Cumbria are reproduced, in a slightly edited form to fit with the content of this Report, in Appendices 1-3.

5.3 Library users

5.3.1 Survey administration

A draft questionnaire designed for completion by library users was included in the Workbook, and discussed during the training day. As noted in the previous Chapter, the standard questions were agreed upon, but some additions or slight alterations were included for each authority dependent on the particular context, and each authority made its own arrangements for distribution. The target agreed was that staff would attempt to distribute 500 questionnaires to library users in each authority: again it is worth stressing that this sample size was adequate to test the methodology and to give indicative results, but was not necessarily the full sample that would be required when the fully-developed methodology was applied in practice.

The methods adopted for distribution proved very effective. Thus, the response rate from Cheshire was extremely high (92% of 459 distributed, across 4 library sites), from Birmingham also high (78% of 500 distributed, across 4 library sites), although less so in Cumbria (48% of 500 distributed, across 6 library sites). Variations in the way questionnaires were handed out within individual libraries as well as regional differences account for the different response rates; high response rates were achieved where questionnaires were handed to individual users and a place was provided for users to complete them. Overall, however, this was a successful approach in many respects: it enabled useful data to be gathered across all the authorities; it was familiar to staff in the authorities and could therefore be delegated to branch libraries; and because it involved frontline staff it ensured that awareness of the project was high.

5.3.2 Initial analysis

Results from the questionnaires were entered into a Microsoft Access database; the majority of questions (an example of the full questionnaire - from Cumbria - is provided in Appendix 4) yielded quantitative data about library usage, ICT usage and attitudes to ICT, but some open-ended questions were also included to allow respondents the opportunity to indicate reasons for their views. These questions yielded useful qualitative data, which provided some valuable insights into attitudes to ICT provision in libraries from library users who were users and from those who were non-users of the facilities.

Overall, 1041 questionnaires were returned, and out of these users, 231 (54 in Cheshire, 42 in Cumbria and 135 in Birmingham) indicated they used the ICT facilities in the library (not necessarily on that visit and excluding the OPAC), an overall usage rate of 20%. The individual percentage rates for each authority varied however, between 13% in Cheshire, 36% in Birmingham, and 18% in Cumbria. These results suggest that the use of ICT services is a minority interest at present, although - especially in Birmingham - a significant one. The reasons for non-use, as we shall see in section 5.3.6 below, are various and include the availability of access elsewhere, lack of interest and lack of knowledge about how to use the facilities. These findings seem to suggest that library users are less likely to be ICT users than the general population. For example, MORI estimated that 36% of the general population were Internet users in December 2000 (MORI 2000); clearly a considerably higher percentage will have computer access although figures for this are not as readily available. This fact may indicate that targeting libraries for ICT expenditure will be a useful strategy within the government's social inclusion agenda by providing significant numbers of non-ICT users with a comfortable place to learn about and practice the use of new technologies.

All results presented below are based on the 231 responses from ICT users, and 810 responses from non-ICT users. All figures are percentages and represent the numbers of respondents answering any individual question.

5.3.3 Profile of respondents

The three sites selected for the trial reflect the different types of library authorities within the UK - an urban, inner-city authority (Birmingham); a rural authority with high levels of tourism but also relatively large towns (Cheshire); and a very rural authority, geographically large and diverse with low population levels compared with the rest of England and Wales (Cumbria). The following tables present a breakdown of the respondents by gender, age, and occupation.

  Male Female
Birmingham 56 44
Cheshire 43 57
Cumbria 44 56
All 3 authorities 48 52

Table 1: questionnaire respondents by gender (percentages)

As can be seen from Table 1, there was a fairly equal balance between men and women, although the pattern in Cheshire and Cumbria of more women than men is reversed in Birmingham, which had a higher number of male respondents.

  Under 16 16-35 36-55 55+
Birmingham 8 57 19 16
Cheshire 3 27 38 32
Cumbria 3 21 36 40
All 3 authorities 5 53 31 29

Table 2: questionnaire respondents by age (percentages)

The age profiles for Cheshire and Cumbria are again similar, whilst the age profile of Birmingham is considerably younger (Table 2). Over half of all Birmingham respondents were aged between 16 and 35, whereas Cheshire and Cumbria had a more equal spread but more respondents in the higher age brackets. Although not shown in the table, more detailed analysis revealed that the proportion of over 65s in both Cheshire and Cumbria was significantly higher than in Birmingham; a fifth of all respondents in both of the more rural authorities were over 65, compared with just 8% in Birmingham.

  employed unemployed student retired other
Birmingham 35 17 33 11 4
Cheshire 48 7 9 30 5
Cumbria 40 7 11 37 5
All 3 authorities 41 10 18 26 5

Table 3: questionnaire respondents by occupation (percentages)

As can be seen from Table 3 above, the largest group in each authority was made up of employed people (full-time, part-time, or self-employed), although this group was a smaller percentage in Birmingham than the other two authorities. Birmingham had the highest percentage of unemployed respondents (17%). The second largest group in Birmingham, almost as large as the employed group, was students, who represented 33% of the sample. Student representation in Cheshire and Cumbria was roughly a third of that in Birmingham. The second largest group in both Cheshire and Cumbria was retired people, making up 30% of the Cheshire sample and over a third (37%) in Cumbria, which reinforces the previous figures on age categories of respondents.

In both Cheshire and Cumbria, an overwhelming proportion of respondents (93% and 94% respectively) were white, whereas Birmingham boasts a multicultural, multi-ethnic population. The ethnic background of Birmingham respondents reflects this diversity; a slim majority (52%) of respondents was white, with the second largest groupings being Pakistani (16%) and Indian (13%). Other ethnic backgrounds represented included Black Caribbean (5%), Bangladeshi (2%), and Chinese (2%).

The profile, then, of Birmingham library users is significantly different than that of the more rural authorities. Users are ethnically diverse, younger, and more likely to be unemployed or students than users in Cheshire and Cumbria, where there are larger numbers of older and retired users and slightly more women represented than men.

5.3.4 Library use

All respondents were asked to indicate their main use of the library. In Cumbria and Cheshire, the overwhelming response was book related (e.g. borrowing of books, reading for pleasure, etc.), with very few instances of another main use. For example, in Cheshire, out of 360 comments, only 3 specifically related to ICT, and a further 12 indicated study or research as the main use. Similarly, in Cumbria, out of 214 comments, 4 were ICT related, and a few again indicated study or research. In Birmingham, however, main uses identified correspond to the higher instance of ICT use indicated, and far more respondents indicated ICT related main uses of the library. Out of 364 comments, 127 respondents (35%) indicated use of CD-ROM, email, or the World Wide Web as their main use of the library. A further 43 indicated study or research as the main use, which is undoubtedly a reflection of the high percentage of students completing the questionnaires in Birmingham. These figures may also reflect the general demographic patterns of Internet use, which indicate that older people are less likely to be Internet users than younger people, and as has been noted above, the breakdown of age groups within the three test sites shows significantly higher numbers of younger respondents to the questionnaire in Birmingham and larger numbers of older people in Cheshire and Cumbria.

5.3.5 Attitudes to ICT provision

All respondents were asked to rate the importance of providing computer facilities in public libraries; 96% across the three authorities rated this as very or quite important. When asked to consider whether ICT facilities are: a) vital; b) an add-on service; or c) an unnecessary expense, again very few users (around 4% across the three authorities) considered them unnecessary, mostly due to the belief that people already had their own PCs, and therefore did not need to access such services in the library.

Table 4 summarises the opinions of all respondents on the provision of ICT facilities:

  ICT as vital ICT as add-on ICT as unnecessary
Birmingham 63 35 3
Cheshire 43 54 4
Cumbria 45 51 4
All 3 authorities 50 47 4

Table 4: Views of ICT provision (percentages)

Half of those answering overall (50%) considered ICT facilities as a vital service, although this varied between authorities, being higher in Birmingham (63%), and representing less than half in Cumbria (45%) and Cheshire (43%). Aside from the 3% regarding facilities as unnecessary, the remainder (47%) considered provision of facilities an add-on service; this again was different over the three sites, being a majority opinion in Cheshire (54%) and Cumbria (51%) but representing just over a third of responses in Birmingham (35%). Respondents were requested to give views to back up their answers, and the majority did. Typical responses from those considering ICT facilities as vital were:

It is growing increasingly important in modern society and access for all is essential.
Future developments will render access to computer/Internet facilities vital for isolated communities for educational and economic reasons. [Comment from Cumbria]
Libraries are the key to access for those without a computer at home.
Libraries should be modern and provide computer facilities as part of helping the community.
IT is part of a remit of libraries to provide information or to direct people to a source for information.

Interestingly, many respondents who indicated ICT as an add-on service also articulated similar comments, particularly about access for those without their own computers, but some also raised issues concerning the balancing of ICT with traditional services:

The main raison d' être of a library is its collection of books…
Provided it is not at the expense of more traditional methods.
Most people have access to computers outside of the library, but few people have access to such an array of books.
A library is mainly for lending books so anything else is a bonus.
I still feel we need a good range of books. IT services must not take over.

What is interesting about these results is the level of importance placed on ICT provision by library users who, for various reasons, do not actually use those services themselves. Among ICT users, as would be expected, ICT was perceived as vital by the majority (70%, averaged across the 3 authorities, representing the views of 215 ICT users). In Birmingham, this was the view of over three quarters of IT users (79%), and of over half in both Cheshire (57%) and Cumbria (56%). Non-ICT users were also highly supportive of the provision of ICT facilities. Just over half (51%) across all three authorities considered ICT as an add-on service, but a significant number (45%) considered it vital. Again, Birmingham respondents indicated a stronger level of support; a majority of non-users (53%) considered ICT to be vital, compared with less than half in Cheshire (40%) and Cumbria (45%). ICT as an add-on service was the majority opinion in Cheshire and Cumbria (56% and 51% respectively), whilst representing 43% of the non-users in Birmingham. These figures are summarised in tables 5 and 6 below:

  ICT as vital ICT as add-on ICT as unnecessary
Birmingham 79 21 0
Cheshire 57 41 2
Cumbria 56 44 0
All 3 authorities 70 30 0

Table 5: views of ICT provision by ICT Users (percentages)

  ICT as vital ICT as add-on ICT as unnecessary
Birmingham 53 43 2
Cheshire 40 56 4
Cumbria 45 51 4
All 3 authorities 45 51 4

Table 6: views of ICT provision by ICT non-users (percentages)

Despite the regional differences, the figures indicate a high level of support for ICT facilities in libraries by both users and, significantly, non-users, in line with the findings of the Usherwood and Lilley (2000: 19) who found that 82.5% of their respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement "information technology is a challenge that the library world needs to face if it wants to be relevant to the next generation".

The greater emphasis on, and higher indication of usage of, ICT facilities in Birmingham compared with the two more rural authorities may be a result of a number of factors, including

5.3.6 Reasons for non-use of facilities

Table 7 below illustrates the reasons that ICT non-users do not use the facilities available; the main one being the availability of access elsewhere. Other respondents indicated they had no interest in using the facilities or did not know how to. Despite this lack of knowledge, very few respondents indicated that a lack of available help was the reason for non-use. In Cheshire and Cumbria, there is evidently a high awareness of the facilities provided by the library, although Birmingham users seemed to be less aware of offered services, with 15% indicating their reason for non-use was not knowing the services were available. There was a very high non-response rate to this particular question in Birmingham; out of 245 non-ICT users, 73 (30%) did not indicate a reason for non-use.

  Didn't know available No interest Don't know how Access elsewhere No help available Other
Birmingham 15 20 16 42 4 3
Cheshire 4 28 17 47 1 3
Cumbria 3 31 20 39 2 5
All 3 authorities 7 26 18 43 2 4

Table 7: Reasons for non-use of ICT facilities (percentages)

5.3.7 Use of facilities by ICT users

ICT users were asked to indicate their main use of the facilities, out of a choice of a) to support a course of study, b) leisure/general enjoyment, and c) independent learning/research. Table 8 below presents the results of this question; the figures are in percentages and indicate the totals out of the numbers of respondents who answered the question (some respondents indicated more than one option). A small percentage of replies in each authority fitted into the "other" category. Their main uses were job related (either seeking work or using the facilities for work), and keeping in touch with family and friends (using email).

  Course of Study Leisure Independent Learning and Research Other
Birmingham 21 19 25 8
Cheshire 17 26 30 7
Cumbria 21 41 24 14
All 3 authorities 20 29 26 10

Table 8: Main use of ICT facilities (percentages)

The majority of ICT users also had access to facilities outside the library (65% in Birmingham and Cheshire, and 55% in Cumbria), mostly at home, although access was also available at work or at an educational institution. So, although non-users of ICT in the library were most likely to give "access elsewhere" as their reason for non-use, the majority of those using library ICT facilities do so despite having access to ICT at other locations.

5.3.8 Value placed on access to ICT services

When asked to indicate the value of having access to ICT facilities in the library, many users gave reasons that had already been picked up in other parts of the questionnaire. These included "only," "free," or "most convenient access," as well as research and general information needs. The question, "How would the withdrawal of computer facilities affect you?" yielded answers which gave greater insights into the value and impact of ICT access for this group of users. Over 80% of ICT users answered this question, and although some indicated that loss of the facilities would not affect them particularly badly, many would be quite negatively affected, either having to find access elsewhere, paying (more) for access, or having to travel to find access. Although most users indicated in fairly straightforward terms that they would have "no other access to computers," or would "have to find other facilities," some had more 'emotional' responses, such as

This is UNTHINKABLE!!
I would have to give up my course and be devastated.

Others gave reasons relating less to the physical access to the technology, and more concerned with what they were able to do with it:

Harder to look for work.
I would feel isolated and I would no longer be able to communicate with friends easily.
[Would] lose social contact with friends from 20 European countries … cultural isolation.

As well as affecting people's ability to access information for reference and study, the comments indicate that the availability of email facilities is very important for social communication as well as for job seeking. Whilst the research by Liff et al. discussed in Section 3.2 above indicated that some librarians are unhappy with use of the Internet for email, it appears to be a popular application with public library users. Although the data for the breakdown of ICT applications used is unavailable for the Birmingham test, results from Cheshire and Cumbria (representing 96 ICT users) showed that 33% had email addresses, and 20% in Cheshire and 26% in Cumbria used email facilities, with 59% and 48% respectively also using the World Wide Web.

5.3.9 Conclusions

The results above illustrate that libraries are becoming increasingly important as locations for accessing ICT to support a range of activities, from formal study to job seeking to building and maintaining social networks using the Internet. Patterns of usage will probably continue to vary across the UK as the needs and priorities of different regions are accounted for. As illustrated by the VITAL test implementation results, support for, and use of, ICT facilities in public libraries may be different in urban and rural areas, where patterns of library use overall reflect the age and occupation of users and, thus, their different priorities. In Birmingham the pattern of a younger, more educationally active library user population emerges, where people associate the library with access to ICT, and use and support these services. Conversely, Cumbria library users reflected a pattern of more traditional use, with higher numbers of older users, giving more significance to book-related services. Further results from the VITAL methodologies (the revised and updated workbook has been distributed to twenty library authorities) may reveal whether the results of the VITAL Project tests are duplicated across the country.

As government initiatives to deliver services and lifelong learning programmes develop and come on stream, and as the roll-out of the People's Network continues, libraries increasingly will be supporting a whole range of users in making the most of these opportunities. Evidence suggests that libraries are popular locations for ICT facilities and that support for fulfilling this role is very high amongst public library users, whether or not personal use is made of the services on offer. Public libraries are still in their infancy with regard to providing and developing electronic services and have some significant challenges to face, particularly in the areas of sustainability and widening access to currently excluded groups, but the enthusiasm and vision is certainly there. The evidence from VITAL would suggest that the public library service does have the potential to deliver the key aspects of the government's agenda in tackling social exclusion, in providing ICT facilities within communities, and in supporting learners. Continued evaluation of the use and impact of the services will be an essential component in developing the facilities and support that users require.

5.4 Non-users

In addition to surveying library users, it was agreed by the VITAL team and Advisory Committee that it was important to gauge the views of non-users. A separate methodology was devised to achieve this, using a number of methods of sampling the population as a whole.

5.4.1 Methods

A standard questionnaire for non-users was drafted and agreed with the three partner authorities, and included in the workbook. Guidelines for recording the answers, along with answer sheets, were provided at a later stage after discussion of the questionnaires themselves and the process for administering them. Each authority was asked to attempt to survey 300 non-users, although this proved an ambitious target to reach within the timescale of the test implementations. Different approaches to administering the questionnaire were taken in each authority, reflecting the local circumstances. For example, in Cumbria, it was felt that the "street survey" approach (i.e. a member of staff stopping members of the public at random and asking questions of them) would not be appropriate, as this would be very time consuming and yield poor results, particularly as time was of the essence and many of the streets in Cumbria can be rather quiet. Consequently, the library enlisted the help of the Information and Intelligence Department of the County Council to carry out a telephone survey, using the VITAL questions, and making use of an existing database of non-library users. This proved very successful, and 300 responses were obtained. Using this method also provided a high level of confidence in the sample achieved.

In Cheshire, the "street survey" method was used, with varying degrees of success dependent on the area. In Chester, a busy city with a high number of tourists, workers and shoppers, a relatively high number of responses was achieved. In other areas of the county however, the results were not as high. The researcher in Cheshire found this method difficult to implement by herself, both as it was time consuming and as it was very hard work undertaking it alone. It also has to be admitted that it does not necessarily produce a representative sample of the total population.

Finally, because the number of respondents was low and the task was proving so time-consuming, alternative methods were explored. Thus, in addition to the "street survey" approach, workers within the County Council were contacted via email, and those indicating interest answered the questionnaire via a telephone interview. Again, while this method was acceptable for the experimental purposes of the Project, it would be less so as a systematic survey of the population of non-users as a whole.

In Birmingham, the decision was made not to use the "street survey" approach, partly for reasons of staff safety - which is likely to be a consideration in any large conurbation. There was a lot of emphasis on reaching non-users of library services from particular community groups, and the approach selected reflected this aim. A list of community groups was drawn up, and users from those groups approached and asked to complete questionnaires. The organisations selected included health centres, a Bangladeshi Youth group, community and leisure centres, and centres where different user groups go to access IT facilities. The organisations were contacted by telephone, and permission requested from managers to use the questionnaire with people who visited their centres. All the managers who were contacted were very supportive of the approach and gave their assent ands cooperation. Again, we note that the sampling was not necessarily representative of the non-user population as a whole.

Despite the different approaches, and the varying degrees of success (in terms of numbers of non-user responses), all three library authorities agreed that this had been an important part of the overall methodology. It had the secondary benefit of enabling them to bring awareness of the library, and in particular ICT services, to non-users, and yielded useful data regarding potential use of ICT services in the library. Although surveying non-users is acknowledged as a difficult, time-consuming and sometimes frustrating process, it is recognised that it can be beneficial in improving and developing both library services and the way services are marketed to different groups within the community served.

5.4.2 Results

Very different results were achieved in the three authorities for this part of the VITAL project. The approach taken by Cumbria proved to be highly successful in terms of reaching the target number. This method was however unavailable for the other two authorities, who struggled to meet the target; Cheshire collected data from 111 non-users, and 134 non-users were interviewed in Birmingham. Due to the different approaches taken to implementing the questionnaire, comparisons of results across the three authorities is problematic. This section therefore describes the results from each authority separately, and also comments on any significant differences or similarities.

5.4.3 Results from the Birmingham non-users

Women represented 65% of the total Birmingham non-user respondents and men 35%. The largest grouping by age was the 16-25 year old category (32%), the smallest being the over 65s (11%). The other respondents were fairly evenly spread across the remaining age categories, although there was only one under-16 respondent.

27% of the respondents were in full-time work, with a further 16% employed part-time, and 4% self-employed. A fifth were retired while students and those unemployed both accounted for 12% of respondents. 10% indicated they had a disability. A majority (52%) were white; almost a quarter (24%) were Black Caribbean; 8% were Bangladeshi; 6% were from Indian backgrounds; a further 6% were from Pakistani backgrounds.

Out of the 134 responses from Birmingham non-users, 56 (42%) were existing IT users, using computers mainly for leisure purposes (36 out of the 56 [20% of the total]), and for educational purposes (32 of the 56 [18%]), but less often for work (26 of the 56 [15%]). The most popular use was word-processing, with 88% indicating that as an application used, followed by spreadsheets and email (50% indicating email use). Many who didn't currently use the Internet indicated they would like to. The vast majority (three quarters of ICT users) had access to facilities at home, with just over half able to use facilities in an educational establishment. 41% also used computers at work.

All respondents were asked about training needs, and asked to indicate where they would go to get ICT training as well as where they would ideally like to have access to training. The most cited place to access training (40 respondents out of 134 [30%]) was a college, followed by a training centre; only three respondents suggested the library. However, when asked about ideal access to training, college and at home were the most popular answers. Just over half of the respondents (54%) were aware that libraries had computer facilities, and 69% indicated they would use those facilities. The main reasons for considering accessing ICT in the library were that provision is free, and that libraries are a convenient site. Others indicated that libraries had better resources than other available access points, including support (both staff and other materials), and that the library is a place they would go to for learning. 41 respondents (31%) indicated they would not use ICT facilities in the library; reasons given were that they already had access at home, they had no need or interest in using computers, or that they did not know how to. When asked which services they would like to have available, almost half the respondents (65 of 134 [49%]) indicated basic training, and a further 21 (16%) would like advanced training. Roughly a third would like to see provision of Internet facilities and open learning opportunities.

Comments given by the non-user group suggest that the library is not automatically associated with access to ICT facilities, although comments indicate that people are in need of training and advice:

I would like to learn about computers…
One to one training in the libraries….

Other respondents indicated a need for greater, and targeted, publicity of the services on offer:

Publicity required and advertise in community languages…

One of the additional benefits of this data gathering exercise was to promote the library amongst the groups contacted, thus encouraging better use:

I will use the libraries now….

This was identified as something libraries could well benefit from doing more of:

Come out more to school/playschemes and promote the library service…

The overall picture, then, is of non-use of library ICT services being caused partly by availability of access elsewhere (usually at home), partly by there being no recognised need on the part of these people for such services and partly by lack of awareness of the facilities available.

5.4.4 Results from the Cheshire non-users

A total of 111 respondents were surveyed in Cheshire, with the breakdown by place and method of approach as follows:

The overwhelming majority of respondents were white (96%), and there were slightly more women represented than men (57% of the total). A fifth of response were in the 16-25 age brackets, and almost a fifth (19%) in the 35-45 range. The rest of the respondents were distributed fairly equally between the other age ranges, although as in Birmingham, the under 16s were not significantly represented (only two respondents). Over a third of respondents were in full-time employment (35%), with a further 18% in part-time employment, and 4% self employed. More students were represented in Cheshire than in Birmingham (17%), the same percentage (21%) of retired people, but far fewer unemployed (only 3% of the total number). 8% of respondents identified themselves as disabled. Cheshire was the only authority with a significant number of non-residents represented in the non-user survey, the total being 33%.

58 (52%) of the Cheshire respondents were computer users, using them, as in Birmingham, primarily for leisure purposes (71%), closely followed by work (67%) and a half using them for educational purposes. When asked to indicate a main use, a third of respondents indicated work. The same percentage as in Birmingham (88%) indicated they used word-processing; this was again the highest use. Roughly two thirds also used spreadsheets and email, with 55% using the World Wide Web. Other uses included Internet discussion groups, databases, desk-top publishing and one instance of 'home shopping'. Most users again used computers at home (78%), and 67% also used them at work, a higher percentage than in Birmingham. Just over a quarter used PCs at an educational establishment (compared with just over half in Birmingham).

67 respondents (60%) were aware that libraries had computers, and 52% indicated they would use them, indicating a slightly higher awareness, but less interest in using the library's facilities. Reasons why current non-users would use library ICT facilities included the pragmatic, such as:

Maybe, if the library had something that I didn't have e.g. expensive software package.

Would use library if home computer not available.
Maybe in the future, when I have more time (e.g. when retire).

Others were slightly more resistant to the idea of using computers at all:

Would use if could think of a reason to use computers.
If I were interested in computers I would use them in the library - but I'm not!

As in Birmingham, some respondents indicated that they might like to use the library to learn more about ICTs, showing that there may be an important role here for libraries:

Especially if there were someone available for help, to give advice and assistance.
Maybe, if I were shown how to use them, I might be interested.

Interestingly, only one respondent indicated that the cost of access in Cheshire was a barrier:

I would, if it were free.

Those indicating they would not use the library's facilities cited access elsewhere (mostly at home) as a major reason, but also that they had no interest or did not know how to. A few older people felt that computers were "not for retired people like me", or that they were "too old to learn now". Of the applications Cheshire respondents would like to have available, Internet access was the most popular (71%, compared with roughly a third in Birmingham). Half would like basic training (as in Birmingham), and a further 28% advanced training (compared with 16% of Birmingham non-users). 41% indicated they would like to access open learning facilities.

5.4.5 Results from the Cumbria non-users

A total of 300 non-users were interviewed by telephone, using an existing database held by the County Council to randomise the sample. A majority (57%) of respondents were women, and the age group 26-35 represented almost a quarter of all respondents. The other respondents were evenly spread between the other age brackets, except (as with Birmingham and Cheshire) the under 16s; only one respondent fell into this age group. 44% were in full-time employment, with a further 11% part-time employed, and 4% self-employed (the same figure as for Birmingham and Cheshire). A slightly higher proportion than in Birmingham and Cheshire (28%) were retired, and only 1% were students (compared with 12% and 17% in Birmingham and Cheshire respectively). Almost a fifth of respondents (19%) indicated they had a disability.

Ninety-four of the 300 respondents were computer users, a lower percentage (31%) than in Birmingham or Cheshire. Over two-thirds (69%) used PCs for work, with over half (57%) also using them for leisure purposes, and roughly a quarter (26%) for educational activities. The main use was for work (53%). As with Birmingham and Cheshire respondents, word-processing was the most used application (77%), with over half (56%) using spreadsheets and email (54%). Other uses people indicated they would like to make of information technology included using the Internet, personal banking, and home education. Two-thirds of respondents used PCs at home, and a similar number (64%) at work. Unlike Birmingham and Cheshire, very few respondents (4%) accessed facilities in educational establishments. Cumbria respondents indicated they would learn more about using computers at work or night school, although home and college would be ideal locations. Over half the respondents (56%) were aware that libraries had computer facilities, although under half (43%) indicated they would use PCs in the library. The main reasons for using library would be if access at work or home were not available, convenience, and the additional information available in a library setting. Those who wouldn't use the library already had access elsewhere, had no interest in using PCs or cited inconvenient opening times. A third of respondents would like to have basic training available in libraries (a lower percentage than in Birmingham and Cheshire), just under a quarter would like to have the Internet available, and 21% would like to see open learning facilities.

5.5 Conclusions

While it is necessary to be extremely careful about the conclusions which should be drawn from what were limited exercises, designed primarily to test methodologies, the results reported in this chapter provide indications of the value and impact of providing IT access in public libraries. These indicative results might be summarised as:

[ Previous Section - Methodology ] [ Next Section - Conclusions ]