Collection Development Policy

Purpose

This policy serves as a guide for the building and maintaining of the Fort Erie Public Library (FEPL or the Library) collections in accordance with the library’s mission. It defines the objectives and responsibilities, provides basic guidelines for selection and de-selection, and establishes criteria for handling requests from community members.

Scope

The policy applies to all physical and digital resources acquired by the library, whether through purchasing or donations. Digital licensing agreements may override general collection practices. Inter-Library Loans are not governed by this policy.

Definitions

• Consortium - a collaborative association of libraries.
• De-selection - also referred to as weeding, is the process of removing items from the collection.
• Format – the form by which the material is delivered or expressed (i.e. a downloadable digital concert recording, a physical print copy of a book, a print photograph, a newspaper article stored on a database, etc.)
• Intellectual Freedom - the rights of library users to read and seek information freely.
• Inter-Library Loans - Materials borrowed from other libraries, governed by reciprocal agreements rather than this policy.
• Rebinding - The process of professionally repairing and reinforcing damaged materials to extend usability, typically reserved for rare or irreplaceable items.

Policy Statement

The Fort Erie Public Library is committed to maintaining a dynamic, relevant, and well-balanced collection that serves the educational, informational, and recreational needs of the community. The Library ensures that materials are carefully selected, regularly evaluated, and responsibly maintained through weeding, repairs, and rebinding when necessary.

The Library’s collection supports:

• Lifelong learning for patrons of all ages, races, national or ethnic origins, religions, genders, sexual orientations or expressions, marital or family status, differing abilities and capabilities.
• Popular and high-interest materials in a variety of formats.
• Early literacy development for children and families.
• Local history, Canadian content, and diverse perspectives.

Factors when assessing materials

• Popular demand and/or anticipated demand based on current trends.
• Community interest in the subject matter.
• Accuracy, quality, and relevance of content.
• Reputation of the author, publisher, or creator.
• Canadian and local significance.
• Balance of viewpoints within the overall collection.
• Suitability of format for library use.
• Availability of materials in other libraries, via the Internet, or from other easily and freely accessible resources.
• Availability of funds and space.

The Library does not collect

• Materials deemed illegal or prohibited by law.
• Advance Reading Copies or pirated versions of materials.
• Academic textbooks (unless of general interest).
• Items that do not meet community demands.
• Items that are in poor physical condition.
• General interest items that have been superseded by a more recent edition.

Understanding the Library’s Collection

• The Library provides diverse perspectives and does not restrict access based on personal or political opinions.
• Inclusion of an item does not imply endorsement of its content.
• Parents/guardians are responsible for supervising the browsing habits and selections of their own children.
• Items do not need to meet all criteria to be added to the collection.
• To maintain an up-to-date and useful collection, materials are regularly removed if they are:
  • Damaged, outdated, or no longer relevant
  • Inaccurate or rarely used
  • Superseded by newer editions
  • Exceptions: Works of local significance, rare items, or classics may be retained.
• Minor repairs such as barcode repair, replacing cases, taping pages, will be done by staff during check-in.
• Items requiring more extensive repairs will be marked damaged in the system and sent to the Senior Collections Librarian with a completed form for assessment.
• Rebinding is reserved for rare, valuable, or locally significant items that cannot be replaced.

Guidelines for deselection/Maintenance of the collection

• To maintain a current and useful collection, materials are regularly removed if they:
• Are damaged, outdated, or no longer relevant
• Are inaccurate
• Have not been used by community members
• Have been superseded by newer editions

Requests for Purchase

• Suggestions by patrons of the Fort Erie Public Library are welcome.
• Patrons may submit a request for an item already owned by the library if the ratio of holds to items available in the consortium is greater than 10:1 for longer than 4 weeks.
• Requests will be evaluated by the Senior Collections Librarian or designate.

Censorship

The FEPL Board does not interpret its function or that of its administrators to be the supervisors of personal or community values. The Board believes in the rights and obligations of the individual and parents to develop, interpret, and enforce their own acceptable choice of reading and viewing materials upon their individual households.

Some items in the collection may challenge popular taste, may purposefully present as offensive, or may be in opposition to local beliefs and norms. For a public library to fulfil its obligation to its community, it must include a variety of viewpoints, even those which may be regarded as controversial. The library will attempt to collect materials on all sides of controversial issues, including representation of unpopular or unorthodox positions without censorship or bias, providing that the materials’ authorship presents a sincere desire to be factual, and that the material could not be classified as hate propaganda under Canada’s Criminal Code.

Objections to Library Materials

If an individual objects strongly to a particular item, they have the right to make an official compliant. All objections will be considered carefully after the patron completes a Request for Reconsideration form, provided by the library.

Requests for reconsideration will be dealt with in the following manner:

• Only patrons of the Fort Erie Public Library can make request for the removal of an item.
• If a challenge to an item is found to originate in a source outside the community, the request for removal will be rejected.
• Requests must be made for each individual item (i.e. requests for blanket removal of an entire body of an author’s works or subject matter will not be considered).
• The CEO or designate will inform the patron of the review procedure.
• The patron must complete a Request for Reconsideration form.
• Completed forms, along with a copy of the item, will be sent to the CEO.
• The CEO will review the material and pass the complaint along with comments to the Board.
• All requests for reconsideration will go to the Board for review at their next regular meeting.
• A two-thirds majority vote from the Board is required to remove the item from the collection.
• The CEO will inform the patron, by letter, of the outcome.
• The decision of the Board is final.

Responsibilities

• Board of Directors: Oversees compliance and reviews policy updates.
• CEO: holds ultimate responsibility for the collection.
• Senior Collections Librarian: maintains the collection as directed by the CEO.
• Library Technician: ensures items are processed in a way that aligns with collection and consortium requirements. Escalates outstanding issues to the Senior Collections Librarian or CEO to be addressed.
• Managers/Supervisors: Communicates expectations and monitors adherence.
• Staff: Follows policy guidelines and reports violations.

Compliance & Consequences

Failure to adhere to this policy may result in corrective actions, commensurate with the nature and severity of the violation. Consequences are applied progressively, with consideration given to intent, frequency, and impact on library operations or patron access.

Examples

Communication

This policy will be distributed to all applicable parties via Rise. An updated copy of the Policy Manual will be available via Sharepoint, Rise, and at the circulation desk. Updates will be communicated in a timely manner.

Related Documents

• Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms: Section 2(b)
• Criminal Code: Sections 63 & 29
• Ontario Human Rights Code: Sub-section 13
• Ontario Library Association - Statement on Intellectual Freedom and Rights of the Individual
• The Canadian Federation of Library Associations - Statement on Intellectual Freedom and Libraries
• The Canadian Human Rights Act Part 3 (1) - Prohibited grounds of discrimination

Anticipated Review Date

September 2028