tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6371203489316363738.post6037563787308394455..comments2024-01-30T07:41:20.885+00:00Comments on Broken Barnet: Barnet Libraries' Capita IT crash: the unanswered questions - and now a devastating audit reportMrs Angryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00586223909475832791noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6371203489316363738.post-45235222174409787362016-05-02T18:14:31.088+01:002016-05-02T18:14:31.088+01:00Well, yes, Anon: Barnet Tories still sit about at ...Well, yes, Anon: Barnet Tories still sit about at meetings congratulating themselves for the wonderful schools in Barnet, when in fact they have nothing whatsoever to do with the success of those schools - and there are plenty of bad ones, as well as some very good ones. <br /><br />The very good ones tend to be either faith schools or highly selective schools stuffed with the highest scoring pupils from across London, not local families, and almost all middle class children tutored up to the eyeballs in order to perform like trained circus animals, and jump through the hoops of the entrance exams. <br /><br />The myth that this qualified success has anything to do with the Tory council needs debunking: but they like to find something to big themselves up as they do f*ck all else to earn their allowances these days, sitting back mostly and letting Capita run things, with the sort of results we are now seeing.<br /><br />It used to be that Barnet Tories prided themselves on the library service, which was always rated highly nationally, achieving beacon status, and delivering a wonderful value for money standard of service. The sort of Tory councillor that understood and appreciated the value of the public library service, however, has disappeared, only to be replaced by a bunch of philistines who don't read, don't care about access to books or information for less advantaged residents, and see no worth in any public service that is free, and unable to deliver a tangible financial profit.Mrs Angryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00586223909475832791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6371203489316363738.post-65662922731758679362016-05-02T11:49:07.392+01:002016-05-02T11:49:07.392+01:00We are essentially `with` capita because the IT sy...We are essentially `with` capita because the IT system didn`t work and no.one in Barnet could fix it... despite £££ spent on equipment and the purchase of the `wrong` tablets for most town hall staff..... How much, in roundabout figures has been spent since we got into this relationship after 2010??? why are we in it? Who knows? Who is monitoring [apart from Messrs R&M + never forgetting Mrs A.] Are our elected leaders too frightened/demoralised/embarrassed/ satisfied to get out??<br /><br />As far as the Libraries are concerned, they were, in earlier, more innocent days, considered to be an integral part of Barnet`s nationally admired Education Service. In times of austerity it may be useful to learn what worked well in the past...before expensively[human AND financial terms] constantly moving on... rolling stones and all that...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6371203489316363738.post-88973999216503477392016-04-27T01:04:36.104+01:002016-04-27T01:04:36.104+01:00Hello the young Middlesex Journalist: very kind. I...Hello the young Middlesex Journalist: very kind. I hope the experience didn't put you off a career in journalism, although one could hardly blame you if it did!Mrs Angryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00586223909475832791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6371203489316363738.post-5805203114602728232016-04-26T01:00:25.789+01:002016-04-26T01:00:25.789+01:00Hello Mrs Angry, I really like your blogs and you ...Hello Mrs Angry, I really like your blogs and you were the only reason I attended the Audit committee meeting last Tuesday. I have so much respect for you standing up when so many others won't.<br /><br />Sincerely, the young Middlesex Journalist.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6371203489316363738.post-64508533970765445472016-04-15T11:11:29.912+01:002016-04-15T11:11:29.912+01:00keep up your good work mrs angry. how low can the ...keep up your good work mrs angry. how low can the tory councillors stoop - so low I suspect they will be underground?!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6371203489316363738.post-48486128985684931352016-04-14T10:06:32.451+01:002016-04-14T10:06:32.451+01:00I am afraid I largely agree with you, Anon. I thin...I am afraid I largely agree with you, Anon. I think the problem lies entirely with a lack of political judgement, and communication within the opposition, between those who are in regular contact with library users, and those who decide group strategy. <br /><br />That said, the real failure here is not in the lack of tactical response by Labour, but the disgraceful action of the Tory group in approving the library plans in the midst of what they know, or should know, is absolute chaos caused by the IT failure, and an apparent refusal by the Tory administration to hold their contractual partners to account, not just in regard directly to the library failure, but in the wider context of the standard of service delivery, and the spiralling level of costs.Mrs Angryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00586223909475832791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6371203489316363738.post-20637883489569527112016-04-14T07:01:07.543+01:002016-04-14T07:01:07.543+01:00Like you Mrs A I have long since ceased to be surp...Like you Mrs A I have long since ceased to be surprised at what our Tory representatives vote for. However I am becoming increasingly disillusioned by the response from the Labour opposition to what should have been an open goal. It's all very well for them to claim that the true nature of the library IT fiasco was hidden from them by council officers but any regular library user could see the mounting disaster by just a cursory engagement with a demoralised workforce. Most Labour councillors hold their surgeries in a library - how did they fail to be so ill-informed? Once again it has been left to Councillor Cohen, the sole Lib Dem, to grasp and vocalise the impending doom facing our library service. Will the Labour group finally start kicking up a fuss about being kept out of the loop on this issue? In this grave new world of aspiring professional politicians seemingly afraid of creating waves, I'm not holding my breath.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com