By Daniel Fujiwara, Ricky N. Lawton and Susana Mourato

This is the first economic study to value the wide range of benefits to individuals and the community provided by libraries in England, combining two economic methods for valuing culture: contingent valuation and subjective wellbeing analysis. A primary survey of around 2,000 library users and non-users shows the combined annual value of local library services is £723.4million. Library use is also positively associated with subjective wellbeing, suggesting that libraries have an important role in users’ quality of life.

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