The provision of European information by public libraries in the UK

Abstract

Describes a British Library Research and Innovation Centre‐funded project to investigate the provision of European information in public libraries in the UK, via the establishment of the Public Information Relay (PIR), a European Commission initiative to provide information about the European Union to the general public. Discusses the background to the PIR and the literature to date. Describes the project methodology and discusses the major findings of the project. The project found that libraries were making very positive efforts to develop their European information services, but that there were concerns about the future development and resourcing of membership of the Relay. While the support of the European Commission was seen as valuable by respondents, the majority of libraries served a wider community of need than was envisaged by the remit of the PIR, in particular being heavily used for educational and business related purposes.

Citation

Marcella, R., Baxter, G. and Parker, S. (1997), "The provision of European information by public libraries in the UK", Library Management, Vol. 18 No. 1, pp. 7-41. https://doi.org/10.1108/01435129710157725