New strategic directions, new opportunities for collaboration

1
New strategic directions, new opportunities for
collaboration

• Lynne Brindley
• April 2001

2
Introduction

• Foretaste of BL emerging strategy
• Key areas of current and future collaboration, in
  particular with HE

3
Roles of the BL

• The British Library is responsible for
• ensuring the comprehensive coverage, recording
  and preservation of the national published
  archive
• providing ready access to the Librarys
  collection and to the worlds knowledge base to
  all who need access to it
• underpinning the effectiveness and efficiency of
  the national network of libraries in the UK by
  providing appropriate library services.

4
Roles of the BL (2)

• In addition, the Library is very well placed to
• promote wider understanding, appreciation and
  enjoyment of the Librarys collections by way of
  public programmes
• take a leading role in international library
  developments

5
Enabling Strategies for the future

• User focus interact more with our audiences so
  as to maximise the relevance and impact of what
  the Library can provide and to extend our user
  base.
• Partnerships initiate and maintain effective
  partnerships with organisations which have a
  stake in our activities and functions, to
  achieve more in partnership than we could do on
  our own.
• Web based improve our traditional services via
  the Web and to provide new services which we
  could not offer without the Web.

6
Strategic Directions

• Our Collections strategy
• To work in partnership to share collecting
  responsibilities
• To focus on user needs and become more selective
  in what we collect
• To improve national coverage if we can

7
Strategic Directions

• Our Access strategy
• Access at the core of all that the Library does,
  with the collections strategy linked to this
• Three main user groups -
• The information seeker
• The general public
• The national and international library network

8
Collaboration with public libraries

• Access initiatives
• Empowering the learning community
• Resources for lifelong learning
• Digital content for Peoples Network

9
Collaboration with archives and museums

• Access to archives (A2A)
• Moving here NOF project
• Culture online
• Collaboration with Resource

10
Collaboration with Higher Education

• Great strategic opportunities
• Benefits to users, institutions and the nation of
  close collaboration between HE and the national
  libraries
• Centrality of web / ICT developments
• creation/delivery of digital learning and
  research materials
• mapping of resources
• user guidance / navigation tools

11
BL/HE Task Force

• Work almost complete
• 4 important studies
• Coordination of the distributed national
  collection
• Future of legacy collections
• Strategic objectives / performance measures
• Review of collaborative collection storage

12
Strategic Advisory Group on Research Libraries

• First meeting in May
• Purpose to advise Funding Councils, BL, NLS, NLW
  on strategies for promoting collaboration in, and
  integration of the development and provision of
  library collections, their long-term management,
  and services to support research
• Membership

13
Strategic Advisory Group on Research Libraries

• Vision that UK researchers should have
  world-class access to information in any format
• Issues
• collaboration for coherent access across system
• better value for money
• consideration of paper/electronic and
  humanities/science
• underpinning infrastructure requirements
• access arrangements
• financing

14
Working with RSLP

• BL involvement in RSLP projects
• RSLP co-funding of BL CPP projects
• Co-funding of strategic initiatives
• Full Disclosure post and project
• UK Collection Level Description Focus (with JISC)
• Close collaboration on steering of BL/HE studies

15
Working with DNER/JISC

• Co-founders of Digital Preservation Coalition -
  joint interests in archiving of and long term
  access to scholarly resources
• RDN pilots
• ZETOC/Join up programme
• JISC/BL/RSLP joint funding of projects
• UK collection level description focus
• UKNUC feasibility study

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In Conclusion

• Build on existing relationships
• Consult on and implement emerging BL strategy
• Develop web resources
• Practical progress through joint projects and
  studies
• Develop and work to shared agenda
• Develop long term sustainable strategic
  collaboration

17
For More ...

• Concord Web site
• National libraries and academic libraries
  working together (Paper for SCONUL meeting
  12/2000)
• http//www.bl.uk/concord/otherpubs_speeches02.html
  
• The British Library and the lifelong learner
  (London Learning Network Group Dec. 2000)
• http//www.bl.uk/concord/otherpubs_speeches05.html