A study of branch library catchments in two London boroughs

A number of interesting associations are described between levels of service point use, population information and library inputs, based on data obtained from two London boroughs in respect of individual static service points. Methods of deriving catchment area data using membership information or postcode data from a user survey are outlined. Data for the resident population by age, unemployment rate and ethnicity extracted from 1991 census data, information on levels of stock and acquisitions, opening hours and proximity to shopping facilities were analysed for their relationship to issues, visits and enquiries at each service point. Regression analysis was used to develop mathematical models for predicting levels of issues per capita, visits per capita and stock turnover, depending on the values of the available inputs. No satisfactory model could be developed for enquiries per head of resident population, and that for visits was far from ideal. A method is described for using these models to identify individual service points which are performing particularly well, or badly, on one or more of these indicators, as a diagnostic tool for chief librarians seeking to improve their services.