FOI Request - Library Services

Request 101003659599

For each calendar year - 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 to date - please could you provide the following:

1.  How many people were registered to use library services at the beginning of each year?

2.  How many people were banned from library services each year? Please specify when and where each ban took place and for what reason? (If accessing online content, what category of site were they banned for?)

3.  How many people in total are banned from libraries in the council area?

4.  How many library fines were issued each year? To how many individuals? And what was the total cost of the issued fines each year

5.  How many of these were paid and what did this total?

6.  How many fines ever issued by library services are still outstanding from each year and what is the total monetary value per year?

Outside of the 2020-24 timeframe, I would be obliged if you could provide the following:

7. Please list the top 10 most overdue items on loan from the library service, and where they were borrowed from, if possible? (Media title and author, please

8. How are late fees calculated and what is the cap?

Clarification sought and received 30-10-2024

Response 15-11-2024

1. Borrowers registered: 33447
Active borrowers : 14730

2. We tend not to ban people as a general rule, it needs to be exceptional circumstance. We have had 2 of those in the past 5 years and these were for aggression and violent behaviour towards staff and other library users. This was from all libraries, not any specific one.
3. 2. see point 3.
4. We did away with fines in 2023. As a result, we also had an amnesty and cleared outstanding fines on all borrower records, so we do not hold the data requested. Information that is not held falls under Section 17 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 - Information not held.
5. See point 4 - not applicable
6. See point 4 - not applicable
7. Most Overdue items:

Title                                                                Due Date               Loaned at
Dinosaurs by Joseph Staunton                               18/12/2017              Burghead Library
Ancient Rome by Fiona MacDonald                        19/12/2017              Burghead Library
The grim ghost by Terry Deary                              20/04/2018              Dufftown Library
Think me back by Catherine Forde                          25/09/2018              Milne’s Library
The Demon Headmaster takes over by Gillian Cross    10/01/2019              Dufftown Library
Jammy Dodgers in deadly danger by Bowering Sivers  01/03/2019              Milne’s Library
Alyssa the snow queen fairy by Daisy meadows          04/03/2019               Mobile Library
Wishing for tomorrow by Hilary MacKay                  04/03/2019              Mobile Library
The unbelievable top secret diary of Pig by Emer Stamp 04/03/2019             Forres Library
The princess and the wizard by Julia Donaldson            04/03/2019            Burghead Library

8. Not applicable