Anger at £137k consultancy bill for Capital library review

Published on Tuesday 24 November 2009 08:39

TWO consultants brought in to lead a controversial shake-up of Edinburgh's library service cost the city £137,000 for less than 18 months' work, it emerged today.

The bill– for the pair who worked on a job-share basis as joint interim managers – has been branded "unbelievable" by trade unions and opposition politicians. They say that the cost will further demoralise a group of staff already feeling at an "all-time low".

The review has seen full-time librarian numbers fall by 19 in a year and left a quarter of libraries with no full-time head librarian.

Culture leader Deidre Brock today defended the costs of the review, and claimed it had resulted in almost 900,000 worth of efficiency savings.

John Ross, a convener at Unison, said: "137,000 is absolutely unbelievable, I'm astonished. I cannot believe how they have arrived at a figure like that.

"It is an absolute disgrace to bring in consultants at a cost of 137,000 to tell us how to deliver a service that has been delivered for well over 100 years.

"And if they are saying that the savings will be 900,000, for them to say that won't hit service delivery is ludicrous.

"I can't understand why we need to bring people in externally when we are winning prizes for the service at places like Sighthill Library."

Last month, one member of staff who left the library service after 30 years said that the review has resulted in the lowest staff morale he ever knew.

The figures emerged after a question on the two-year review by Labour councillor Paul Godzik.

He said: "It seems incredible that the Lib Dem/SNP administration spent over 130,000 on private consultants that have made decisions that have led to demoralised staff and morale at an all-time low."

The city council said that the two consultants worked from April 2008 until August 2009.

Real-term staff costs, taking into account inflation, are said to have fallen by 898,597 in the two years of the review.

Councillor Brock said: "The consultation has had an absolutely positive impact on our libraries service. The review has transformed the service; it has reduced staffing costs, refocusing resources to frontline staff. It has also allowed for refurbished and improved libraries."