The National Poetry Library and the South Bank Centre

Regular readers of Rogue Strands might recall my post last September (see here) about the National Poetry Library's attempt to charge for membership, an attempt that failed on the back of petitioning from throughout the poetry scene.

Well, the situation has now worsened, not only with the temporary closure of the entire South Bank Centre due to Covid (which means no one could access the Poetry Library anyway) but also with the Centre's consequent aim to make mass redundancies and shift to a far more commercial model. The question at this point, of course, is how the change will affect the library in both the short and long term.

I'm not against the idea of seeking out new revenue streams for arts ventures and venues through the use of their premises, so long as that's combined with sensible public funding. However, this commercial process often seems to provide an excuse for ludicrous salaries in senior posts rather than making the most of those extra funds to generate high-quality, free artistic content for users who might otherwise be excluded.

Moreover, I do get extremely concerned when marketing people start producing word salads like the following quote from an excellent New Statesman article on the issue:

“When we talk about ‘start-up’ we mean a ‘mind-set approach’: being agile, adaptable to change, moving fast, risk-taking, innovating, constantly learning, changing the status quo, learning from failure, for example. We are not re-modelling operationally as a start-up.”

This is just empty fluff. Of course, everyone's aware that the South Bank Centre's income will have dropped hugely and will remain at a low level for the foreseeable future. Neverthless, the current crisis shouldn't be allowed to offer a perfect excuse for a permanent change in approach and the loss of one of the nation's key cultural assets. In this context, central government must step up to the plate for once.

We need the National Poetry Library, we need its excellent staff and we need free access to its unique collection. Once again, we're going to have to defend it...!

Excellent news from the National Poetry Library

On the back of a large petition and numerous complaints from major figures in the poetry world, I'm delighted to report that the National Poetry Library have today announced that they have decided to suspend the planned launch of the new membership scheme for next week (see here).

Instead, they intend to consult the poetry community as to how they might raise the funds that they require to keep growing. This is, of course, excellent news, and I personally would suggest that they have scope to build a far stronger annual programme of readings, events, courses and workshops than at present without stepping on anyone's toes, simply by making the most of their terrific location. Sponsorship, meanwhile, is an additional option that might be worth considering if it helps keep the library free to join.

Fingers crossed that this unfortunate episode might in the end lead to the strengthening of such a valuable resource for U.K. poetry...

National Poetry Library

Back in the 1990s, the National Poetry Library was a lifeline to me. I'd take the train up to London for the day on every trip over from Spain and cram in as many hours as possible in the South Bank Centre, poring over the latest issues of poetry magazines. I never spoke to anybody, but the mere fact that others were sitting there doing the same thing, with similar tastes and attitudes, seemed miraculous and made me feel far less alone.

And I know of many others who can tell similar stories. All capital cities are tough places for young people to live in, especially for newcomers who are often strapped for cash, and the National Poetry Library has long provided a safety net for countless poets who are just setting out, reassuring them that poetry is a welcoming, inclusive genre. I still feel I belong there as soon as I step through its doors.

For these reasons, I'm especially upset to learn today via social media and the National Poetry Library website that they plan to launch a new paid-for membership package that means new members will have to pay for the privilege of borrowing books from 2nd October onwards. Of course, there's an inevitable reminder that the mags and collections, etc, will still be free to browse. However, I can only say that such a membership model might well have put me off going in for the first time all those years ago, and I'm convinced it will have the same miserable effect on others if it is implemented in the future.

I can only express dismay that the National Poetry Library should be feeling "excited about this new option" as they claim on their Twitter feed. Here's hoping they backtrack in the face of growing criticism over the coming days from luminaries who are capable of exerting far more pressure than me...