What happened to the social service workers at the Peterborough Public Library?

Social service workers were assigned to work in the downtown location of the Peterborough Public Library (PPL) in the spring of 2022. Intended to help overburdened library staff meet the needs of vulnerable people using the public space for shelter, the program was deemed a success. And yet it seems to have ended at some point.

Installing social workers in public libraries is a fairly common practice in Canada, and is widely done in the United States. And it makes sense. Growing social inequality has put increased pressure on public institutions to respond to problems outside their strict mandate, often with limited funds. Libraries are open to the public, and it’s understandable that they become crucial spaces in the lives of people without shelter.

The library went through a lot in a short time. It reopened after significant renovations in 2018, then served as a temporary shelter in 2019, then closed completely due to COVID-19 in 2020, then partially reopened before fully reopening. In 2022, at the same time social service workers were installed, library management initiated a change in the staffing model. Then the library again served as a temporary shelter in late 2023. Finally in 2025, came the controversy about staff reductions, which were then reversed.

A promising partnership

Monthly reports submitted to the City of Peterborough’s Library Board by former PPL Chief Executive Officer Jennifer Jones at the time show that the social service worker program was initiated in response to staff complaints, and also perhaps concerns raised by library users. Although worded cautiously, the reports suggest the program was somewhat effective while it was in operation.

Earlier in the year, Jones had reported that library staff “have been trying to address several issues that are beyond their comfort levels, without the necessary tools,” and that “Staff are also facing their own individual challenges with mental health, compassion fatigue, and finding empathy for members of our community.” The same report notes that members of the public had “reported that they feel unsafe at this time and won’t be returning until things change.”

Social service staff began working Tuesdays to Thursdays at the library starting April 26, 2022, and documents from the time indicate there was a positive impact. “On the first day, several people were specifically looking to speak with a social services staff member,” Jones wrote in a report dated May 10. The CEO’s report was positive – “this partnership appears promising” – but hinted at some stress among the workers: “Library staff are excited about the initiative and staying flexible as we work through establishing this type of additional service.”

In the same May report, Jones wrote to the Library Board that “things appear to have turned a corner. Many of the same challenges still exist, but their frequency and severity has decreased.” She noted that the presence of social service staff was one factor among several that might have contributed to changing the situation.

The next and final reference to social service workers in the library in Jennifer Jones’  reports to the Library Board was in November of 2023, where it was noted that no Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) had been identified as a basis for evaluating the program. Nonetheless, “Both parties are in agreement that the arrangement is working,” she wrote.  

A creeping mandate

It is not clear from the reports when the program ended. But the picture Jones’ reports paint of a workforce under immense strain is corroborated by other sources.

One library employee interviewed by Peterborough Currents noted that the periods when the library building was used as a temporary overflow shelter contributed to some of the intensification of uses. “They’re there all night, and they’re there all day because there’s really nowhere else to go,” the employee said, “So of course there’s going to be these lines getting blurred, you know, ‘What is that space?’”

Another report shared with Peterborough Currents refers to a “creeping mandate” that sees library staff doing more and more of what could be called social work and less and less of what would strictly be called library work – and feeling burnt out as a result.

“People were very clear … about their official duties,” the report says, “but they also described other activities they undertake on a regular basis that fall outside their official duties.”

Becky Waldman, PPL’s Communications Coordinator, told Peterborough Currents that the program simply ran its course and was not renewed. She also emphasized that the social service employees were not social workers, and were simply doing their regular work in the library space, not doing outreach with library users.