LibraryOn: the next phase of the Single Digital Presence

As I come to the end of my time with the Arts Council, I want to reflect on the progress we’ve made so far realise the vision of the Single Digital Presence (SDP). To date, the project has been our largest single investment in the strategic development of public libraries. 

I have always been excited by this project and its potential to put UK library services on the map and at the forefront of library innovation. Over the past few months, with a new operational team in place, we have been seeing real progress and the promise of more to come.  

It has been a difficult concept to get our heads around, particularly when so much is still theoretical.  A recent article in The Bookseller revealed that there is still a fundamental lack of understanding of what this platform is about and what it can and can’t achieve. 

Developing the SDP in a changing landscape

The economy, indeed the country, is in a different place from when we started work on this project in 2018; we know that times are once again going to be tough for the sector. And the SDP has a role to play here. It’s about providing tangible support to public libraries when they need it most by showcasing the totality of the library offer in one space. Developing the platform in this climate has necessitated a flexible model, so that we can ensure it responds to the evolving needs of everyone working in libraries, whether they’ll use the SDP or not.

The team at the British Library has taken every opportunity over the past few years to discuss with the sector in many different forums what the implications and potential of this programme are  – an essential level of engagement in a rapidly changing landscape. The preparatory groundwork has needed to be extremely thorough, but the team has needed to be adaptable to reflect and respond to those changes. Building a sustainable product that properly meets both current and future needs has taken time and care to get the fundamental underpinnings right. The British Library team has met and responded to every challenge and we are on the cusp of seeing real progress and development as we move into an initial testing phase.

If we get the SDP right, it will have not only national but international significance. Many countries have attempted such a platform but the work has misfired, failing to capture fully the imagination fully or respond to changing demand.  

At its heart, this project is about driving home the message that we in the library sector all know to be true: that libraries are vital, vibrant, relevant spaces that have so much to offer in enriching people’s lives. For all those reasons, we want to encourage people to engage with the totality of the experience that libraries can offer, of which the digital experience is one element. 

Digital transformation is complex, particularly if the aim is to deliver at local, regional, national and international levels. It requires the entire library sector to work with the SDP team to realise it as well as organisational change to reflect the ways in which we, as a society, are choosing to spend our leisure time and access content and information. 

It also needs the sector to be open to putting the complex and ever-changing needs of library users at the forefront of the development work. The approach of the project team has always been to put the complex and ever-changing needs of library users at the forefront of their development work. This requires them to be constantly agile and fleet of foot.

Entering a new era of the SDP

I’m also conscious that yet again I am talking about this project rather than showcasing it; which is why I am delighted to announce the new branding for the project, which has been adopted after consultation with many distinct groups of all ages and stages, including library users and non-users. The project formerly known as the Single Digital Presence will now become LibraryOn, reflecting that sense that the library is important in so many areas and is always there to inform, delight, help and support. 

The LibraryOn team has been really grateful for this level of public and service engagement and is now ready to demonstrate the prototyping necessary to enable the next stage of the project. Having shared the brand, they will also share the beginnings of a site, which they plan to keep testing and learning from, based on real time feedback. In addition, library services will be invited to apply to work with them to prepare their websites for the beta testing phase of the project.  

In addition to the prototyping phase, next year we will also run a grant programme to enable some of our library services to begin to test, refine and shape the future of the project. I sincerely hope that the sector will begin to understand fully the potential of this platform and what it can achieve. I hope that it will support the team in driving both awareness and staff and public engagement. It is perhaps important to say that while we are still a long way from the finished article, I do feel we are at the end of the beginning.

As I retire, I shall be observing the progress of this project with interest as it continues to develop and I am confident, that once the sector begins to get involved operationally and to be proactive in shaping the future development of Library On, my excitement and sense of innovation will be felt by all.