EDGE2013 Conference Programme

DAY ONE Thursday 28^th February 2013

8.00 – 9.15 Coffee and Registration in the lobby, Roxburghe Hotel

The Physical – Investing in Infrastructure

Many authorities are now recognising how they can effectively push the boundaries of public service delivery, create more cost effective estates, build stronger communities and promote economic vitality through their libraries.

Libraries are now defining a vision for themselves, as hybrid libraries, which are a combination of a conventional library and a new electronic network library. See just how many large cities are planning and building public libraries, which are critical to the city centres. Most often, library projects are associated with the regeneration of towns and city centres, or with converting an industrial area or harbour for cultural use. Planners are more and more seeing the value of enhancing commercial areas with public library and cultural buildings open to everyone.

So what are you doing about this? Are you getting left behind? Learn from the leaders in the field!

Chair: Jonathan Guthrie – City Development Partnership Director – City of Edinburgh Council

9.15 – 9.30 Welcome and Introduction by Councillor Richard Lewis, Convenor of Culture and Leisure

9.30 – 9.40 Jonathan Guthrie

9.40 – 9.55 Keynote Speaker – Rory Mair CBE – CEO Convention of Scottish Local Authorties (COSLA)

9.55 – 10.15 Brian Gambles -  Director for the Library of Birmingham – Future City, Future Library

Libraries demonstrate through their cultural and learning engagements how physical capital translates into social capital, and how the “pulling power” and cross-demographic appeal of libraries can bring people together, adding value to social discourse and creating an environment in which individuals learn and communities flourish.

10.15 – 10.35 Neil MacInnes – Head of Library, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council – Culture at the Heart of the City

We believe in our libraries and will continue to do so, despite the challenging financial circumstances. They sit at the heart of many of our communities, a vital hub of learning. They are modern, vibrant places, which are about much more than book lending.

10.35 – 11.05 Refreshment Break

11.05 – 11.25 Mark Turley – Director of Services for the Communities, City of Edinburgh Council – Next Generation Libraries

Edinburgh City Council are stepping into “The Next Generation”. New libraries are opening, new horizons are coming into play.

11.25 – 11.45 Frances Roberts – Service Development Co-ordinator, New Blackwood and Kirkmuirhill Community Wing – South Lanarkshire Leisure & Culture


Hear how this brand new small, but with a huge impact library, has been developed and is developing!

11.45 – 11.50- The Design Concept – sponsors of our Physical category award


11.50 – 12.15 Questions to speakers on panel

12.15 – 1.15  Lunch

 The Social – Better Together

How do we build community resilience? Resilience here is defined as ‘the ability to solve problems, act for the future and participate in decision making’. The world is at a critical point in history, facing a growing number of threats including environmental issues, economic recession and humanitarian disasters. Experience and research show that the quantity and quality of social capital within a community plays a crucial role in our resilience.

Public services and in particular public libraries initiate and support activities that engage, involve and connect people; discover and make the most of people’s talents and potential; improve and create networks within and between communities; and nurture relationships of trust and partnership through working together

How resilient are your communities? How can you build social capital? What can you do to build strong communities? Learn from experts and get ahead of the game!

Chair:  Annie Mauger – Chief Executive of Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals

1.15 – 1.30 Annie Mauger

1.30 – 1.55 Richard Watson – Co founder Strategy Insight – What’s Next

“Will relentless consumerism end up destroying our planet , or will science and technology allow us to invent our way out of trouble? Perhaps a greater collective consciousness and sense of community will take over ?”

1.55 – 2.15 Clare Thompson – North Yorks Council, Winners of Libraries Change Lives

Hear all about the Skipton Rewind Songwriters Club and why this particular project was a well deserved Winner of this wonderful award.

2.15 – 2.45 Refreshment Break

2.45 – 3.05  Debbie Hicks – Director of Research, The Reading Agency

Myhealthylibrary – Public Libraires in partnership with NHS

3.05 – 3.20 Karen Cunningham – Head of Libraries, Glasgow Life

McMillian Library Partnership

3.20 – 3.45 Paul McNeil – Scottish Football Association, Dyslexia Scotland Ambassador – Success is for everyone.

“When Dyslexia Scotland asked me to be an Ambassador I was very proud and excited and jumped at the opportunity. After learning that I had dyslexia at the age of 13 and being given very little support, I have had to overcome a number of challenges to be able to succeed. I hope that via this role I will be able to help provide support to Dyslexia Scotlandand show young and old people with Dyslexia that they can achieve whatever they want in life…”

3.45 – 3.50 Capita – Sponsors of our Social award category -  Protecting Library Services’


3.50 – 4.00 Questions to speakers on panel

7pm Drinks reception in the Melrose Lounge

8pm Dinner is served in The George Suite

Bill Thompson from the BBC presents the EDGE2013 awards.

There are 2 finalists in each category:

Physical, Virtual/ Digital, Social

Carriages 11pm.

DAY TWO Friday 1st March 2013

9.30 – 9.50 Arrival & coffee

The Digital – It’s time for the Future

Information and communications technology impacts on the communities in which we live and the way individuals, business, government and civil society interact and develop. Simultaneously, all sectors have shown increased interest in the concept of social capital and the role ICT can play in building stronger communities, increasing economic productivity and contributing to regeneration. As the use and impact of ICT increases and government agendas shift to a requirement on the individual to be ICT literate, the prospect that ICT can play a role in shaping the nature of community development and contributing to the building of social capital is even more important.

ICT is changing the way that individuals within communities interact, expanding the concept of community to those groups that are not bounded by geography, i.e. so-called virtual communities.

How ready are you for the new world of communications and community? Is your community ready for the impact of Public Sector Welfare Reform? Are you socially networked? Virtually engaged? What’s new?  Find out what you don’t know from leaders in this arena

Chair:  Graham Coult – Editor-in-Chief of Managing Information.

9.50 – 10.00 – Graham Coult

10.00 – 10.10 Keynote Speaker - Mike Neilson - Director for Digital, The Scottish Government

Ensuring that Scotland is positioned to take full advantage of the opportunities offered by the digital age. Developing the SG’s Digital Strategy and co-ordinating its implementation – focusing on four key areas to achieveScotland’s digital ambition: public service delivery; the digital economy; digital participation and broadband connectivity

10.10 – 10.30 James Murdock – Director of Multimedia Content, New York Public Libraries - Network Communities

Libraries have long provided physical spaces where people can come together to learn and create. Increasingly, they’re also offering digital tools that encourage people to interact with collections–and with each other–online. James Murdock will describe a few of The New York Public Library’s innovative experiments in the area of crowd-sourcing, online participation and the digital humanities including its “What’s on the Menu?” project and the iPad app Biblion.

10.30 – 10.40 Alan Sinclair – City of Edinburgh Council, COSLA Spokesman on Public Sector Welfare Reform

10.40 – 11.00 Natasha Innocent – Demand Stimulation Lead, Broadband Delivery UK – Connecting the Disconnected

Our goals – to ensure this country has the best Superfast Broadband in Europe by the end of this parliament (2015), delivery of standard broadband to virtually all communities in the UK within the lifetime, to ensure the efficient use of funding to deliver Superfast Broadband and Standard Broadband and to assist other Government initiatives which are dependent on customers ability to access Broadband based services.

11.00 – 11.20 Bill Thompson – Head of Partnership Development, BBC Archive Development - Libraries: The gateway to the digital

As more material becomes available in digital formats libraries occupy a unique position as gateways to digital space while remaining firmly located in the physical world, offering access to the material from the BBC and many other institutions.

11.20 – 11.50 Refreshment Break

11.50 – 12.10 Marshall Breeding – Independent Consultant – Nashville USA – Predicting the Smart Library

Marshall is a regular presenter at library conferences including Computers in Libraries and Internet Librarian conferences, has been a LITA Top Technology Trends panelist at ALA conferences has been an invited speaker for many library conferences and workshops throughout the United States and internationally.

12.10 – 12.30 Jim Thompson -Information & Digital Services Manager, Edinburgh Libraries – “Digital Strategy for Smarter Library”

Rapid change in resources and the digital world means it is critical that libraries make the best use of what’s available to develop and improve services. No Plan No Gain

12.30 – 1.00 Questions to speakers on panel

Liz McGettigan to close EDGE2013

1pm: – Scottish Beer Tasting in The Atrium, followed by further networking opportunity over lunch.