Introduction

This chapter pursues the theme of equity in more depth and asks the question: ‘should public libraries focus on social exclusion, social inclusion or community cohesion?’ This question is considered through the lens of the ground-breaking report Open to All? The Public Library and Social Exclusion (Muddiman et al., 2000). This research suggested that although public libraries were currently modernising their services, this modernisation was unlikely to refocus the public library on excluded communities and social groups. The report concluded that, to do this, and to become more than superficially ‘open to all’, the public library would need to transform itself into a far more proactive, educative and interventionist public institution, with a concern for social justice at its core. If libraries are to make a difference on the ground, they must first of all identify the needs of everyone in their communities, particularly those at risk of exclusion, through unemployment, disability, age or language barriers. Public libraries have the potential to play a key role in tackling social exclusion, but in order to make a real difference they need to undergo rapid transformation and change. It is interesting to revisit these recommendations now that the New Labour concept of social exclusion (a proxy for social class) has been superseded by the Tory notion of ‘levelling up’.

New Labour

The latter part of the 20th century saw deteriorating trends in social exclusion and inequality. Some of the main causes of social exclusion, such as unemployment (particularly long-term unemployment) and the proportion of children growing up in workless and low-income households, got significantly worse.