The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Public Libraries and WiFi David Potts Senior Network Adviser The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council

Agenda The Peoples Network Background to WiFi development Libraries supporting others Why WiFi in public libraries? The pilots Evaluation Next steps

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council The Peoples Network Infrastructure National mosaic of local networks 90% broadband connectivity Accessible ICT in trusted local venues (libraries) Delivered on time, in budget

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council The Peoples Network Successful project 4,200 libraries 3,000 UK online centres 30,000 terminals 60 million hours Very popular Building on success Instant Shop window infrastructure

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Framework for the Future Published February 2003 by DCMS Restates the importance of libraries Offers a 10 year development vision Challenges for the Peoples Network How to use the network? MLA Action Plan Digital Citizenship Peoples Network Service Widening access

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Components Personalised interface Online enquiries Sense of Place resources Virtual reference shelf e-government Web browsing! WiFi could help widen access to the Peoples Network Service

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Background 10 Downing Street MLA, OeE, DTI, Intel Stephen Timms, Minister for e- Commerce Pilots idea Identifying funding

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Libraries supporting others UK online centres Key government target on universal Internet access E-government National and local Broadband DTI TCA

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Department of Trade and Industry To ensure the competitiveness of the UK economy, broadband needs to be available to as many people as possible. Better partnerships between the broadband industry, Government, the regions, local government and local communities will allow every community to experience the same advantages broadband brings to some rural communities already – and in a far shorter timescale than ever envisaged.

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council The Countryside Agency To make life better for people in the countryside and to make the quality of the countryside better for everyone To improve life for people in the countryside: boosting and improving essential rural services improving the economic potential of the countryside

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Why WiFi in public libraries? Target rural libraries Often only broadband location Internet on the pause Fast food restaurants, train stations, coffee shops Laptops already being brought in Existing Peoples Network infrastructure Experimenting with new technology Familiar location Are libraries good locations for WiFi hotspots? Opportunity for libraries to experiment

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Issues to be explored Ease of installation True cost Setting up costs Usage levels Impact on front line staff Robustness of technology Security Charging Anything else

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council The Pilots - Locations Ayton Library (North Yorkshire) Barnard Castle Library (County Durham) Belper Library (Derbyshire) Brewood Library (Staffordshire) Chatburn Library (Lancashire) Launceston Library (Cornwall) Lyndhurst Library (Hampshire) Potton Library (Bedfordshire) Princetown Library (Devon) Sandwich Library (Kent)

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council The Pilots Hardware for loan PDAs, laptops Different scenarios Inside the library Inside and outside the library 12 months duration

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Evaluation How often is hotspot accessed? For how long? When? Session interrupted? Charging successful? How much are people willing to pay? Staff impact Network impact

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Next steps Disseminate evaluation National rollout? Museums, Archives?

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Summary Peoples Network success is the key Organisations willing to invest in libraries if we can respond effectively Libraries seen as innovators The need to keep trying new approaches Contact