ABSTRACT
The public library of the future is increasingly conceived, and justified, as 'an asset that helps local people identify with their community', as an 'agent for community computing' or even a 'community university'. More immediately in Britain, however, the increasing legitimacy and political acceptability of the communitarian perspective have given renewed impetus to community policy and community work. Such policy should seek 'authentic engagement with groups and organisations active at the community level' and give priority to the 'disadvantaged, oppressed and marginalised segments of society'. In the nineties, conjecture about the significance of information technology (IT) – in particular the internet or 'information superhighway' – has increasingly animated commentators on community development, just as it has public librarians. Partly in response to these kind of ideas, a number of local authorities in the UK have begun to initiate community development strategies linked to the opportunities offered by IT.
