The telephone survey provided insights into management perceptions of training needs. The predominant view here was that basic ICT skills, Internet navigation skills and ICT gatekeeping skills were priority areas across all staff groups. It appears that only about two-thirds of public library authorities with service development plans and staff development policies included in them references to information and communication technology. Only one in ten of those interviewed reported that they had any experience in producing or digitising in-house content and products. Time, funding, attitudes to information and communication technology and limited infrastructures emerged as possible barriers to training.
Different views exist over accreditation.
From the evidence concerning current ICT training in public libraries, it is clear that while some staff regard an accredited qualification as important, for others it is of less concern. This suggests that training routes should be flexible and librarians should be given the opportunity to choose accredited routes if they so desire. Additional issues from the home countries meetings Common concerns emerged from Scotland and Northern Ireland about the need for an appropriate agency to manage funding, validate training, and ensure quality for this training initiative. Colleagues at one of the Welsh meetings highlighted the need for training materials in the Welsh language, and some had concerns that there might be authorities who would not bid for training. The English meeting identified the need for a leader in each authority to ensure that training was authority-wide and corporate.