Nottingham City

Library service transformation

Services provided

Consultation; engagement; libraries; needs assessment

Overview

Activist were commissioned to support the consultation elements of ‘The Next Chapter’ (a city-wide library service needs assessment), providing an evidence base to help develop longer-term and sustainable approaches to planning future library provision across Nottingham City.

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Activist’s independent perspective, sector knowledge and ‘check and challenge’ support was invaluable to us; during a challenging project, the overall process felt robust and reassuring.

Nottingham City

How we helped.

Our work involved the engagement and primary research element of the project (comprising an online survey, available to all members of the public; interviews with key Council stakeholders and library service partners; focus groups with service users and non-users; facilitated workshops with partner organisations and a cross-section of library service staff); exploring and analysing the collated views, ideas and aspirations of the people who live, work and study in Nottingham; regular reporting to a joint project team, and presentation of our findings and recommendations for the Council’s consideration.

Activist also supported an independent review of the business case for Nottingham’s new Central Library following the structure of the Green Book five case model. Our work included scoping the work required to update the business case to reflect the impact of recent changes such as the COVID pandemic and the emerging findings from the ‘The Next Chapter’; reviewing the original vision and plans; identifying an emerging updated vision and engaging with key stakeholders.

What our clients say about us.

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It was great working with Activist

It was great working with Activist – they had a strong commitment to doing an excellent job as shown in the quality and depth of their analysis and the clarity of their written reports.

Croydon Council

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Their contribution was a key factor in meeting the deadline

Activist provided excellent advice and skills in all aspects of this ground-breaking venture, including sensitive management of stakeholder relationships during difficult stages of the project. Their contribution was a key factor in meeting the deadline for the establishment of the joint venture company and in the initial realisation of benefits.

Herefordshire Council / NHS Herefordshire

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A pleasure to work with

Activist worked at pace to deliver an evaluation report that our senior leadership were very pleased with. Activist were a pleasure to work with, well organised, thorough and helped us to achieve our intended outcomes against a set of challenging timescales.

Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP)

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We learned so much

We learned so much from the Activist team, who provided brilliant support to help us transform our service and improve our income generation. Their commercial and negotiating expertise helped us increase the financial performance of our external contracts.

Bracknell Forest Council

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It was incredible how much was achieved

An enormous thank you for the work on the lockdown report. It was incredible how much was achieved against the clock! The report seemed to have a very enthusiastic response. It is not just me saying it’s a great report – you hit the jackpot by producing something of value to heads of service.

Libraries Connected

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We are very happy with Activist’s work

We are very happy with Activist’s work and it has helped us take a more strategic approach to funding requirements and securing match funding for the Town Deal Programme, as well as providing support to Glastonbury Abbey in progressing their ambitious longer-term development plans.

Mendip District Council and Glastonbury Abbey

Nottingham City

Library service transformation

Category

Services provided

Overview

How we helped.