Introduction

Using this site

News

Background Reading

Cabinet Office Social Exclusion Unit Web Site

Research reports

LIC Policy

Open for All?

The Network Society

National Policy initiatives

European action

Scotland

Wales

Northern Ireland

Social Exclusion Action Planning Network

Training and Development

References

This new resource is intended for all public library professionals, particularly those whose role is to put policy into practice. It aims to provide an easy way in to recent publications, research and networked resources about social inclusion that might be relevant to public libraries.

A policy dimension

Since the election of the New Labour government in 1997, social inclusion has been one of the key concepts underpinning many of its actions. One of the first was the establishment of the Social Exclusion Unit (SEU) within the Cabinet Office, which has set about a programme aimed at dealing with the problems of poor and isolated communities. The SEU website contains up to date information about its work: there is no mailing list so it may need to be checked regularly.

Social inclusion?

So what is ‘social inclusion’? The problem of definition was tackled in the Department for Media Culture and Sport (DCMS) report Libraries for all : social inclusion in public libraries. The Library and Information Commission (LIC) published, just before its demise, Libraries: the essence of inclusion, and gave a definition showing the variety, complexity and subjectivity of social inclusion.

LIC, under its own research strategy, commissioned a core policy research project, published as Open for All? The Public Library and Social Inclusion. This is a start point for any reading on the issues. The project report deals with the problems of definition (the differences between social exclusion inclusion and cohesion). Its reading list appears with additions and amendments here. A summary of the report appears here.

Other reports talk of the ‘digital divide’ and ‘digital exclusion’ – that is being unable to take part in the benefits of the ‘Network Society’. Another way of looking at exclusion is by its defining characteristics – the habit of non-participation, the habit of isolation and a perceived lack of opportunity and choice. In Scotland the talk is of ‘social justice’.

Last updated: Friday, 24 August, 2001