Public Libraries in Salford: A Geographical Analysis of Provision and Access

The provision of public libraries in a metropolitan area is evaluated using 1981 Census data. Measures of accessibility to libraries are computed and the access of particular potential user groups is highlighted and explored empirically. Proposals for further investment in library provision are examined using Census data on the distribution of potential users and location — allocation methods. Last, the extension of the approach to look at the spatial organisation of a mobile library service is demonstrated.

[1]  The Distribution of Benefits in an Urban Environment , 1977 .

[2]  K. Jones,et al.  The use of Chi-square maps in the analysis of census data. , 1980, Geoforum; journal of physical, human, and regional geosciences.

[3]  A C Gatrell.  The Measurement of Access to Local Shopping Opportunities: A Comparison of Accessibility Measures , 1984 .

[4]  A. Kirby,et al.  Provision and Wellbeing: An Agenda for Public Resources Research , 1982 .

[5]  Alun E. Joseph,et al.  Accessibility and Utilization: Geographical Perspectives on Health Care Delivery , 1984 .

[6]  J. E. Bradley,et al.  Distance Decay and Dental Decay: A Study of Dental Health among Primary School Children in Newcastle upon Tyne , 1978 .

[7]  C M Guy,et al.  The Assessment of Access to Local Shopping Opportunities: A Comparison of Accessibility Measures , 1983 .

[8]  A. Gatrell,et al.  Spatial Constraint and the Location of Urban Public Facilities , 1976 .

[9]  R. L. Hodgart.  Optimizing Access to Public Services: A Review of Problems, Models and Methods of Locating Central Facilities , 1978 .

[10]  Avijit Ghosh,et al.  Issues in Measuring Differential Access to Public Services , 1982 .

[11]  Maheswari Visvalingam.  The Signed Chi-square Measure for Mapping , 1978 .

[12]  Public service provision and urban development , 1985 .

[13]  T. M. Godwin.  Developments in Manchester's public libraries as a result of the Inner City Programme , 1981 .

[14]  S. Pinch.  Inequality in pre-school provision : a geographical perspective. , 1983 .

[15]  P. Knox,et al.  The Intraurban Ecology of Primary Medical Care: Patterns of Accessibility and Their Policy Implications , 1978 .