KINGSTON TOWN NEIGHBOURHOOD COMMITTEE

13 MARCH 2013

PROVISION OF STAFF AND PUBLIC FACILITIES AT KINGSTON LIBRARY

REPORT BY THE OF CULTURAL SERVICES AND LIFELONG LEARNING

SUMMARY

This report sets out the case for improved staff and facilities at Kingston Library and Museum, using the one off staffing underspend of £30,000 from the Kingston Library budget in 2012/13 to refurbish two dedicated staff and convert the remaining toilet into a unisex public toilet with disabled access for use by library and Museum visitors.

RECOMMENDATIONS

It is RECOMMENDED that

The Neighbourhood agrees to carry forward the funds to carry out this work in 2013/14 subject to approval by the Policy & Resources Committee in June 2013 in light of the overall Council outturn position

REASON FOR RECOMMENDATION

Improved staff and public toilet facilities can be provided by Kingston Library and Museum.

BACKGROUND

1. There are 3 main staff toilets on the Kingston Library and Museum site for 19.6 FTE members of staff, plus adult learners from the Open Learning Centre run by Kingston Adult Education who also have access to staff facilities. The 3 staff toilets were first made available to the public for shared use with staff as an interim arrangement during the closure and refurbishment of the Cattle Market public toilets. However, when the Cattle Market toilets re-opened the public continued to have access to the staff toilets and this continued until January 2013.

2. The Cattle Market toilets are dedicated public toilets with separate male and female facilities and a disabled toilet accessed with a Radar key. They are free to use, clean, well-maintained and one minute’s walk from the library and museum.

3. Since January 2013 the Library Service has withdrawn the public’s access to staff toilets and members of the public are referred to the nearby Cattle Market toilets. An exception is made for the elderly and infirm, people with a and pregnant women. A dedicated children’s toilet is also available for parents and children in the Children’s Library. The decision to withdraw access was made on the condition of the toilets which had deteriorated to such an extent that without capital investment it was not possible to maintain the toilets to an acceptable standard for staff and the public. RBK’s Occupational Health service had also advised the Strategic Manager for the Library & Heritage Service that it was unacceptable for staff to have to share facilities with the public.

4. Ideally, Kingston Library and Museum would like to have a public toilet available for their users. In developing new services, such as the Hook Centre, improving facilities for the public is one of the main priorities. Many people spend all day in the library and, similarly, users of the museum can spend a morning or afternoon looking at exhibitions and they expect to have appropriate facilities on site. Kingston town centre is not over-provided with public toilets and the ones that are available are heavily used. We know from experience that library and museum users do not like to be referred to public toilets when using our services.

PROPOSAL

5. This year there will be an underspend of £30,000 on Kingston Library’s staffing budget. The proposal is to use the underspend to refurbish two toilets for the exclusive use of staff thereby fulfilling the Occupational Health requirement that staff do not have to share toilets with the public. The third toilet would be converted into a dedicated unisex public toilet with disabled access.

6. The staffing underspend has come about for a number of reasons. This year has been an exceptional year for the Library Service with a major review of frontline services and a new staffing structure in place from June 2012. Some of the staff at Kingston Library were appointed to new posts at other libraries in the borough. Other staff chose to leave the service as part of the restructure and there has been the usual staff turnover due to retirement or staff moving to new jobs outside RBK. There is also a Recruitment Restraint process in place which inevitably slows down recruitment to vacant posts. Since June we have been involved in a major recruitment exercise for Kingston Library and are just coming to the end of that process now, but it means we have been carrying a number of vacancies throughout the year resulting in the underspend. We have managed to keep services running by using staff from other Neighbourhood libraries to cover gaps at Kingston as well as offering extra hours to part time and Saturday staff, but it has been extremely difficult running the service on minimum staffing levels for most of the year.

7. In reviewing the budgets for Kingston and Tudor Drive libraries throughout this year, there has been some caution as there was uncertainty as to how much income would be achieved in 2012/13. DVD issues fell by 29% in 2011/12 with a knock on effect on income. The closure of chains such as HMV and Blockbuster indicate the fundamental shift to digital providers in this area. More locally, the closure of Latchmere Open Prison resulted in the loss of £2,000 guaranteed income for the services provided to the prisoners by Tudor Drive Library. Tudor Drive Library was closed for 6 weeks for work on its roof with a consequent loss of income during that period. As we come to the end of the financial year income is holding up well and any underachievement on income targets will be offset by the underspend on staffing, while still leaving the funding required for the project outlined in this report.

TIMESCALE

8. The work would be carried out within the 2013/14 financial year subject to approval at the P&R Committee in June 2013.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

9. The under spend on libraries budgets as at the end of month 8 was £8,923 and this was reported to the Committee as part of the Revenue Budget 2013/14 report in February. The monitoring as at the end of month 10 indicates this under spend has increased to £30,000.

10. The Committee has previously approved an allocation of £9,500 from the forecast outturn under spend to fund heritage signs. This can be met from under spends forecast against Rangers budgets and the youth service budget, leaving the full under spend on libraries available to fund this work.

11. The request to carry forward the actual under spend at outturn will be considered by the P&R Committee at its June meeting. It is recommended that works are scheduled to begin after this date when the level of available funding has been confirmed.

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPLICATIONS

12. In refurbishing the facilities, careful consideration will be given to using appliances such as hand dryers and flushing systems that are energy and water efficient.

NETWORK IMPLICATIONS (if any)

13. There are no network implications.

Background papers : held by Grace McElwee– 020 8547 4823, e-mail: [email protected]

• List all background papers here Library & Heritage Service: Key Performance Indicators 2011/12 Kingston Town Revenue Budget 2013/14 – report to Committee 6 February 2013

Author of report: Grace McElwee