Mission

Purpose

The West Nipissing Public Library serves as the community's access centre.

The Library brings people into effective contact with resources of expression, experience, inspiration and knowledge according to individual requirements. Information provided by the West Nipissing Public Library refers not only to inert data but to the dynamic process of communication and interaction with both human and recorded resources.

The West Nipissing Public Library serves all of the people in its community in their roles as individuals or as members of the organizations, except insofar as other libraries and information providers are designated to serve their resource needs in specifically defined areas. This Library also participates with other libraries in resource sharing agreements and cooperative networks in order that each library may provide a comprehensive range of information.

Implementation

Given this purpose, the Library plans and develops its services in response to the needs of the community. It serves every individual regardless of age, education, religion, economic level, ethnic and cultural background, political conviction, social status, or mental and physical health. To carry out this mission it will require:

• knowledgeable staff to consider the circumstances of a user's information requirements and connect them with the appropriate resources,
• creation or acquisition of index or directory access tools to allow the identification and retrieval of information resources required by library users,
• selection, organization and control of a balanced, representative, in-house collection of recorded resources (in various media) to respond conveniently to the most prevalent resource needs of users,
• subscriptions or contracts for the use of electronic data-bases and other resources transmitted in non-traditional forms,
• participation in cooperative networks to maximize the availability of resources outside the library,
• communications facilities, equipment, convenient service hours, adequate space, and a comfortable environment, and,
• outreach and public awareness activities to foster use by community members of their information centre.

Adopted June 12, 2003

Intellectual Property

The public library is a democratic institution and no individual or minority group should be allowed to limit the community's freedom to read. Democracy cannot flourish unless material representing all viewpoints is freely available. West Nipissing Public Library subscribes to the following "Intellectual Freedom Statement", ratified by the Canadian Library Association in June 1984,which affirms its commitment to the following basic policies:

1. Every person in Canada has the fundamental right, as embodied in the nation's Bill of Rights, to have access to all expressions of knowledge, creativity and intellectual activity, and to express his thoughts publicly. This right to intellectual freedom is essential to the health and development of Canadian society.
2. Libraries have a basic responsibility for the development and maintenance of intellectual freedom.
3. It is the responsibility of libraries to guarantee and facilitate access to all expressions of knowledge and intellectual activity including those which some elements of society may consider to be unconventional, unpopular or unacceptable. To this end, libraries shall acquire and make available the widest variety of materials.
4. It is the responsibility of libraries to guarantee the right of free expression by making available all the library's public facilities and services to all individuals and groups who need them.
5. Libraries should resist all efforts to limit the exercise of these responsibilities while recognizing the right of criticism by individuals and groups.
6. Both employees and employers in libraries have a duty, in addition to their institutional responsibilities, to uphold these principles.

Bulletin Board

One role of the West Nipissing Pubic Library is to provide information to library users about events or services of a cultural, educational, or community service nature. The use of the bulletin board by community groups and individuals is invited subject to the following guidelines. The approval process is handled by the library staff in accordance with the policies of the Library Board. The Library Board reserves the right to refuse any materials.

1. Posters and flyers should be of an educational, cultural, recreational or philanthropic nature, or supply non-partisan information on the government and/or community.
2. Posters or flyers which advertise commercial sales and/or services are not accepted for display, nor are materials which promote particular religious or partisan political views or advocate action on behalf of particular religious or political organizations.
3. No fundraising/Volunteer sign-up sheets or petitions are accepted.
4. Staff will follow publicly posted guidelines in making decisions about placement of materials. Items will be posted or made available on an equitable basis, subject to available space, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of the individuals or groups represented. Preference will be given to posters that contain specific information on an event(i.e. time, place, date).
5. Generally, notices and posters will not be posted for longer than three weeks.
6. Posting of a notice or placement of materials does not imply endorsement by library staff or the Library Board.
7. Posters and flyers should be neat, presentable and of a size appropriate to the Library’s bulletin board.
8. All articles on display will be left at the owner’s risk. The library does not take responsibility for the loss, defacement or return of materials to organizations or individuals.

Meeting Rooms

Meeting rooms are provided for library and library-related programs and meetings. After these needs are met, the meeting room facilities are available to groups or organizations interested in the promotion of educational, cultural and leisure activities in the form of meetings, seminars and workshops. and organizations in accordance with this policy as established by the Library Board.

Exclusion

1. Private social events;
2. Bingos, lotteries or games of chance
3. Events promoting specific political candidates;
4. Business activities such as sales promotions;
5. Religious services or evangelism meetings;
6. Programs that are not suitable for the Library’s physical facilities

Use of the meeting group by any group or organization does not constitute an endorsement by the Library Board of the group’s policies or beliefs. The Library will not knowingly permit any individual or groups to use its facilities in contravention of the Criminal Code of Canada.

Groups using the facilities may not limit attendance on the basis of race, colour, religion, sex, age, sexual orientation, mental or physical disability as defined by the Constitution Act, Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom, 1982. The Library reserves the right to attend any meeting held in its facilities.

Applications for the use of rooms shall be made to the library staff at which time the purpose of the rental, the fee and facilities available will be discussed. The West Nipissing Public Library Board reserves the right to accept or refuse a reservation, or to cancel any bookings at its discretion.

Computers

In response to advances in technology and the changing needs of the community, the West Nipissing Public Library endeavours to develop collections, resources and services that meet the cultural, informational, recreational , and educational needs of the community. It is within this context that the West Nipissing Library offers access to the Internet.

The Internet is a global electronic network: there is no province /country of its users or content. The Internet and its available resources may contain material of a controversial nature. The library cannot censor access to material nor protect users from offensive information.

Children are entitled to access to all information and facilities in the library . Children’s access to the Internet and other electronic networks is the responsibility of parents or guardians. Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult when using the computer. Parents of minors under 16 must sign a consent form and assume responsibility for their children’s usage of the Internet through the library’s connection.

The library staff cannot control the availability of information links which often changes rapidly and unpredictably. Not all sources on the Internet provide accurate, complete or current information. Users should evaluate Internet sources just as they do printed publications, questioning the validity of the information provided.

The West Nipissing Public Library assumes no responsibility for any damages, direct or indirect, arising from the use of its computer servers.