Go to National Library of Australia Home PageNational Library of Australia Online

SEARCH:

NLA 35th Annual Report 1994-95


Corporate Overview


The Library is a statutory authority, established by the National Library Act, 1960, in the portfolio of the Hon. Michael Lee MP, Minister for Communications and the Arts.

  • Mission of the National Library
  • Corporate Objectives
  • Structure
  • Social Justice and Equity

[IMAGE]
The Hon. Michael Lee MP, Minister for Communications and the Arts, speaking at the opening of the National Portrait Gallery's High Society exhibition, March 1995.

Mission of the National Library

The mission of the National Library is to be the world's leading documentary resource for learning about and understanding Australia and Australians, linking closely with other sources of information throughout the nation. In partnership with other institutions, the Library aims to lead and facilitate developments to achieve a highly effective national network of libraries.

Corporate Objectives

The Strategic Plan 1993-98, Service to the Nation, Access to the Globe, outlines the Library's objectives for the coming years and indicates the major initiatives to be undertaken between 1993 and 1996. It gives the key priorities as:

  • collecting and preserving Australian documentary materials of national significance, and ensuring those materials are known to and used by greater numbers of people;
  • promoting community understanding of the Library as a national cultural and information services institution, and of its collections and national services;
  • maximising the ability of Australians, through the national system of libraries, to obtain the materials and information they need for their own and the nation's development.

The Library has set objectives for five areas:

National leadership and coordination

  • To provide leadership to the Australian system of libraries and information services and work with other institutions in the national interest.
  • To foster the development of effective and equitable Australian library and information services.

Services to libraries

  • To facilitate nationwide access to documents held by libraries and other information providers.

Collections and services to the community

  • To collect, organise, preserve, promote and utilise documentary materials which are of national significance in providing an understanding of Australia and Australians.
  • To provide an efficient, timely information service from the Library's collections, and through referral to other national and international services, to meet the needs of Australians who are engaged in the formulation and transmission of knowledge, particularly in research, policy development, authorship and creative endeavour.

International activities

  • To maintain and develop a significant presence in the international library and research community, aligned with Australia's longer-term foreign policy, trade and humanitarian objectives.
  • To integrate the Library's developments effectively within the international system of information and library networks and networked applications.

Support services

  • To maximise the effectiveness of services delivered to clients through the staff and other resources available.
  • To provide our staff with a working environment in which they may develop and make increasing contributions to our objectives.
[IMAGE]
New Zealand's Governor-General, Dame Catherine Tizard, is shown some of the treasures of the Library's Manuscript collection by manuscript librarian Glenn Schwinghamer (left), October 1994.

Structure

To undertake its functions and achieve these objectives, the Library has four divisions: Collections and Reader Services, Services to Libraries, Cultural and Educational Services, and Corporate Services. In addition, an Executive Support and Policy Coordination Branch reports to the Director-General and Deputy Director-General. Figure A shows the detailed structure of the Library.

The resources of each area of the Library and the functions for which they are responsible are given below.

The Collections and Reader Services Division facilitates access to Australia's documentary heritage wherever it is held. This division collects, organises, preserves and promotes the use of the Library's collections.

Table 1: Financial and staffing summary


   1994-95        1994-95        1994-95        Staffing    
    Budget         Actual        Revenue                    
   $A('000)       $A('000)       $A('000)                   

    16 194         16 075         (451)           278       

The Services to Libraries Division facilitates nationwide access to documents held by libraries and other information providers by supporting the library network system.

Table 2: Financial and staffing summary


   1994-95        1994-95        1994-95        Staffing    
    Budget         Actual        Revenue                    
   $A('000)       $A('000)       $A('000)                   

    7 644          7 078         (7 885)           90       

The Cultural and Educational Services Division promotes the use of Library collections throughout the community.

Table 3: Financial and staffing summary


   1994-95        1994-95        1994-95        Staffing    
    Budget         Actual        Revenue                    
   $A('000)       $A('000)       $A('000)                   

    4 125          4 004          (894)            57       

The Corporate Services Division provides services to the operational areas of the Library.

Table 4: Financial and staffing summary


   1994-95        1994-95        1994-95        Staffing    
    Budget         Actual        Revenue                    
   $A('000)       $A('000)       $A('000)                   

    14 116         13 105         (503)           115       

The Executive Support and Policy Coordination Branch provides direct support for the Director-General and Deputy Director-General and undertakes a range of coordinating activities.

Table 5: Financial and staffing summary


   1994-95        1994-95        1994-95        Staffing    
    Budget         Actual        Revenue                    
   $A('000)       $A('000)       $A('000)                   

    4 640a         2 682           (9)            27b       
a Includes $A1.671m to be carried forward to 1995-96 for the development of the National Document and Information Service.
b Includes 12 paid inoperative staff.

Other Information Sources

Further information about the Library's functions, objectives and activities can be found in the following documents:

  • National Library Act, 1960
  • The Library's Operational Plan, produced annually
  • Information Technology Strategic Plan 1995-98, due for release August 1995
  • Equal Employment Opportunity Plan, March 1994
  • Human Resource Management Plan, 1995
  • Staff Development and Training Plan, produced annually.

Social Justice and Equity

The Library's principal goal for its clients is to provide all Australians with equitable access to its collections and services in a manner appropriate to their individual needs. The Library has a broad range of activities, from the provision of bibliographic data to its travelling exhibitions program, all of which are aimed at fulfilling the library and information needs of Australians.

In partnership with the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies and the National Museum of Australia (http://coombs.anu.edu.au/~cims/nma/nma.html) , the Library developed the exhibition 'It's about Friendship'-Rom: A Ceremony from Arnhem Land. The Library undertakes community liaison in the areas of easy-to-read books, literacy and audio books. The publication of Our Multicultural Heritage 1788-1945: An Annotated Guide to the Collections of the National Library of Australia by Dr Barry York is expected to contribute to the multiculturalism debate. In May 1995 the Library participated in the Roundtable on Library and Archives Collections and Services of Relevance to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. This meeting discussed accessibility of information held in libraries, archives and museums and focused on a set of protocols for access. More detail on these activities is given in the body of the report.

The Library's Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) initiatives for the year have included: implementing the Library's 1993-96 EEO program; conducting Library-wide workplace harassment awareness sessions and specific EEO awareness sessions; establishing a network of EEO contact officers; funding six staff from non-English-speaking backgrounds to attend communications skills courses at the Canberra Institute of Technology; developing and distributing information on workplace harassment and EEO; funding 35 female staff at the ASO1-ASO4 level and 10 female staff at the ASO5-ASO6 level to attend Springboard courses; conducting a disability access audit; presenting cross-cultural information awareness sessions; and developing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander recruitment and career development strategy.

[FIGURE A]

[Figure A]

Table 6: Financial and Staffing Resources Summary


                                   1993-94         1994-95           1994-95 
                                    ACTUAL          BUDGET            ACTUAL 
                                   $A('000)        $A('000)          $A('000) 

COMPONENTS OF                                                                
APPROPRIATIONS                                                               

Program Costs                                                                
(excluding running                                                           
costs)                                                                       
     Acquisitions                    6 002           5 716             5 618 
     Capital works & services        1 654           1 733             1 118 

Running Costs                                                                
     Salaries                       21 283          21 396            21 291 
     Administrative expenses        13 847          17 874            15 004 

Total Expenditure                   42 786          46 719            43 031 
Less Adjustments                                                             
     Revenue                        (8 804)         (9 244)           (9 742) 
     Less cash on hand at           (3 659)         (4 257)           (4 257) 
     beginning of financial year                                                      
     Add cash on hand at end of      4 257               0             4 186 
     financial year                                                            

Total Outlays                       34 580          33 218            33 218 
     Comprising:                                                                  
     Appropriation Bill No. 1       33 950          31 247            31 247 
     Appropriation Bill No. 2          630           1 971             1 971 

Staffing [a]                                                                    
     Staff Years                       557             560               567 
a These figures have been rounded. For more detailed information on staffing, see Appendix 1.

Return to the Index or Continue to the next section ...


Last updated 2 May 1997
About This Site | Copyright | Privacy | Accessibility | Site Map | Site Search | Content A-Z | Contact Us