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Library user conduct

City Library policies on library user conduct help keep this space safe and enjoyable for everyone to use.

Purpose

In alignment with its commitment to intellectual freedom and its role as a community gathering place, North Vancouver City Library makes its public meeting rooms available for community use when they are not required for library purposes, provided such use does not unduly disrupt routine library operations.

Scope

These guidelines apply to everyone renting space in the library.

Guidelines

Priority for library use
The library’s meeting rooms are primarily for public service, such as programs, activities and meetings that are coordinated, produced or hosted by the library or presented by the library in partnership with other community agencies.

When rooms are not required for use by the library, they may be made available to the public for rental.

Regulations
The Chief Librarian shall establish reasonable regulations for the efficient utilization of the meeting rooms. Regulations may address availability of meeting rooms, hours, fees, bookings, permitted activities and other conditions of use.

Regulations must be reviewed and consented to by anyone wishing to rent a library meeting room. Failure to abide by regulations may result in the refusal or cancellation of a booking.

Rental rates
Rental rates are approved by the Library Board and reviewed annually.

Discounted rental rates are available to not-for-profit entities, provided no fees are charged to attendees. When a not-for-profit entity charges an admission fee or requires a donation for entry, the regular private room rental rate will be applied.

Rental fees may be waived for partner organizations. Criteria for such waivers shall be established by the Chief Librarian.

Content and uses
The library does not limit rental of meeting rooms based on subject matter, content of the meeting, or beliefs and affiliations of the meeting’s sponsors.

Acceptance for rental of meeting rooms does not imply North Vancouver City Library endorsement, support or co-sponsorship of the activities, beliefs or viewpoints of the users or groups renting the meeting rooms.

No group using the meeting rooms may engage in any unlawful or illegal behavior under any law of the Province or the Country including those specified in the Criminal Code and under human rights legislation.

If, in the opinion of the Chief Librarian, the use of a room by any group significantly interferes with library operations or presents physical risk to library users, staff or property, then the Chief Librarian shall have sole discretion to refuse or cancel such a booking.

The library may bump or cancel a booking at the Chief Librarian’s sole discretion.

The library may limit the number of bookings by any one person or organization.

The library recognizes the need, at times, to have specially trained animals to assist those with disabilities. It also recognizes the need to minimize the potential health and safety risks to the public and employees that may result from the presence of animals at the library.

Guiding principles

These guidelines are informed by the Guide Dog and Service Dog Act.

Scope

These guidelines apply to everyone using the library building.

Definitions

Service animals are animals that are individually trained to perform tasks for people with disabilities — such as guiding people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling wheelchairs, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure, or performing other special tasks. Service animals are working animals, not pets, and include therapy animals (e.g. therapy dogs).

Guidelines

To balance customer needs with health and safety concerns, only service animals may visit the library. Service animals must be restrained, be fully under their handler’s control at all times, and shall not unreasonably interfere with the health and safety of other library users.

A staff member attempting to ascertain whether an animal is a service animal shall not ask about the nature of a person's disability, but may ask for proof of the service animal’s status (e.g. government certificate, doctor’s note). Any concern about potential misrepresentation should be brought to the attention of a supervisor.

Staff may exercise discretion in enforcing these guidelines for customers with non-service animals who are engaging in brief transactions ONLY (e.g. picking up a hold or returning materials), provided:

  • The non-service animal is restrained (e.g. leashed or in a cage or pet carrier) and fully under their handler’s control at all times
  • The non-service animal is not causing a disturbance (e.g. barking)

City Library aims to provide items for loan that reflect our mission as a popular materials library supporting lifelong learning, literacy and cultural diversity. We provide a balance of traditional and new formats of information including books, physical audio-visual media, ebooks and more.

We are committed to the ongoing development and maintenance of collections that address the needs of all users in our community. This guideline is intended to provide direction and information to staff regarding the selection and deselection of materials so that the mission and mandate of the library can be realized through collection decisions.

Guiding principles

Collection development is guided by the library’s mission statement, core values, strategic directions and vision statement. The library’s primary roles of being a popular materials library, focusing on lifelong learning, supporting literacy in all its forms, and being a community meeting place further inform collection decisions. In addition the North Vancouver City Library adheres to the Statement on Intellectual Freedom and Libraries adopted by the Canadian Federation of Library Associations, (Appendix 1) and respects the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, guaranteeing freedom of thought, belief, opinion, and expression. The library also complies with laws and court decisions and therefore does not collect materials that have been judged obscene or pornographic or that have been banned by the courts.

Scope

These guidelines apply to all staff responsible for the selection of library materials at the North Vancouver City Library.

Guidelines

  • Given the library’s primary roles, collections focus mainly on popular materials, resources for lifelong learning, and items that promote literacy in all its forms. Diversity, inclusion, and balance are also main themes articulated in the Guiding Principles above.
  • The following criteria are taken into account in the purchase of library materials:
    • Popular demand and current trends
    • Reputation, skill, competence, and purpose of the originators of the work (i.e. author, illustrator, editor, publisher, or producer)
    • Quality of design, illustrations, or production
    • Appropriateness and effectiveness of format to content
    • Availability and price
    • Objectivity and integrity
    • Vitality and originality
    • Availability of space and shelving/maintenance considerations
    • Attention of critics, reviewers, media, and the public
    • Prizes, awards, or honours received
    • Suitability of format for library use
    • Relation to existing collections and other material on the subject
    • Contemporary significance (i.e. timeliness) or permanent value
    • Representation of cultural diversity
    • Suitability of subject and style for intended audience
    • Contribution to subject balance of the entire collection
    • Contribution to the diversity of coverage on controversial subjects
  • The library contracts with a library materials vendor, which delivers items preprocessed and pre-catalogued in order to minimize costs. A limited number of items are purchased outside of this contract.
  • Scope notes are developed for each collection and these give direction to selectors by expressing the parameters and focus of a given collection.
  • In addition to a selector’s professional judgement, collection decisions are further informed by professional reviewing sources, vendor hotlists, publisher catalogues, and customer suggestions for purchase.
  • The principle of intellectual freedom includes the belief that individuals have the right to access all expressions of knowledge, opinion, and creativity. Collection development therefore deliberately includes materials that represent all significant points of view – including those which express controversial or unpopular ideas. Inclusion of such materials does not imply endorsement by the library or the Board.
  • There is a process to be followed should a library customer object to an item being included in the collection (Appendix 2). The ultimate decision regarding deselection of an item in such circumstances will be made by the Library Board.
  • The library predominantly collects materials in the English language. French language materials are also collected given that this is an official language of Canada. Moreover, representative collections in the top five non-official languages spoken in the City are also provided. These foreign language collections are assessed every five years and are chosen according to Canada Census data.
  • Today, the balance of print and digital collections is a priority.
  • Digital materials are accessed through consortial arrangements and licenced outright. Decisions regarding digital acquisitions are guided by ongoing research.
  • Donated materials are not considered for inclusion in the collection. Donated items will be disposed of in the library’s book sale. Funds from this source are used for ordering new materials for the library.
  • The library establishes an overall collection size. This is maintained through an active weeding process which allows the library to maintain the optimum collection size established in the scope notes. Removed items are disposed of through the library book sale.

Statement on Intellectual Freedom and Libraries


Request for reconsideration of library materials

Procedure

  1. Staff receive a verbal complaint from a customer about an item in the collection.
  2. If the customer is not satisfied with the staff response, staff will encourage the customer to fill out a request for reconsideration of library materials form.
  3. The customer completes and submits the aforementioned form to the staff to be forwarded to the Chief Librarian.
  4. Upon receipt of the completed form, the Chief Librarian sends out a letter acknowledging the customer’s request.
  5. The Chief Librarian strikes a review committee of at least two staff members.
  6. The committee reviews the material and checks reviews of the same in professional journals and other sources.
  7. The committee prepares a written response with recommendations and action to be taken and sends it to the Chief Librarian within three weeks of the receipt of the request.
  8. If the customer is not satisfied with the written response of the Chief Librarian, the customer may forward the request form to the Library Board for their review.

Request for reconsideration of library materials form

Acceptable use

  • The computers are located in a public area shared by users of all ages, backgrounds and sensibilities. Please consider other library users when accessing internet sites from this public station. Library staff may intervene to handle complaints of inappropriate or legally prohibited material on internet sites
  • Respect the privacy of other users
  • Refrain from disruptive behaviour that may disturb other users.
  • Use only your own library card and not another individual’s library card or multiple library cards
  • Users may not alter or damage library equipment, software or data files; users may not install or run other software on library equipment
  • Users may not seek access to any unauthorized areas on the library’s network, nor computers of other users
  • Users must not seek information on, obtain copies of, or modify files, other data, or passwords belonging to other users
  • Users should not represent themselves as another user
  • Users may not distribute unsolicited advertising or maliciously spread computer viruses.
  • Failure to cooperate with staff and other users in following these guidelines may result in temporary or permanent loss of internet and other library privileges

Internet disclaimer

  • The library assumes no responsibility for the accuracy, timeliness or appropriateness of materials accessed over the internet. Parents or guardians are responsible for what their children might access on the internet
  • The use of our computers for illegal, actionable or criminal purposes or to seek access to unauthorized areas is prohibited. Infringement of copyright and software licensing agreements is prohibited
  • The library cannot guarantee security and confidentiality of any public internet transaction, particularly online banking or credit card transactions. These are undertaken at a user’s own risk
  • The library assumes no responsibility for any direct or indirect loss, damage or fees incurred through the use of its internet connection

Public internet

City Library provides access to a range of information resources, including those available on the internet. This service is part of our mission to be a gateway to knowledge, providing access to popular materials and lifelong learning beyond the confines of our physical building.

While the internet offers access to a wealth of material that is enriching to individuals of all ages, it also enables access to some materials that may be objectionable or illegal. The library strives to balance the rights of users to access a wide range of information with the rights of users to work in a safe public environment free from harassment.

Guidelines

  • The library supports users’ rights to have access to all expressions of knowledge, creativity, and intellectual activity in accordance with the Canadian Library Association’s Statement on Intellectual Freedom.
  • The Library complies with the Canadian Copyright Act, the Criminal Code of Canada, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and other legislation governing all citizens.
  • Customers of all ages have free, unfiltered access to internet computers in the library.
  • Parents and guardians are responsible for what their children read and view on the internet. As an aid, the library provides a commercial web content filter for computers in the children’s area. These filters block much of the material that may be considered inappropriate for children.
  • The library protects the privacy and ensures confidentiality of legitimate users. Both staff and customers are asked to respect the privacy of others and not to interfere with their computer use. The library does not monitor any personal information or websites visited.
  • The library strives for best practices in providing security for our equipment and network, and takes protective measures against non-standard and known malware sites, recognizing that this may restrict access to such sites. Only websites connecting through standard ports 80, 8080, 8000, 443 and 143 are supported. This covers most standard http, https and email sites.
  • The library promotes a safe computer environment free from harassment and disruptive behaviour or activity.

This policy is reviewed annually by the library board. Customers using City Library’s public internet stations must accept the above conditions and agree to the acceptable use disclaimer.

The City Library building is a state-of-the-art facility offering resources, programs and services for a variety of groups and interests. While we cannot guarantee a completely noise-free environment, we take the library as a community resource seriously and recognize the need to ensure a safe, enjoyable and balanced facility for all.

Our 50-seat silent study is dedicated for quiet, individual use. Please refrain from conversations and audible phone use. Headphones must be used with all devices and the sound must be inaudible to others. Headphones are available to borrow from the second floor info desk.

For the safety of all, children younger than 10 should be accompanied by a responsible adult.

Children 10 and older are welcome to visit the library on their own. However, parents should be aware that staff are not able to watch the children.

If you are looking for a safe place to leave your child for several hours and need information about activities and daycare programs, please speak to the person at the information desk.


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