Social Return on Investment (SROI)

Supporting our Community

$1 City of Spruce Grove invests into SGPL = $7.96 SROI. 

A total economic value of 9.5 MILLION to our community!

Social Return on Investment (SROI) reveals aspects of library service in dollar terms that would otherwise remain hidden; because the most significant value of a library is serving as a community hub, SROI provides the monetary value of the library’s cultural, social, cognitive, health, and economic benefits plus contributions to community cohesion and improved overall quality of life.

The SROI of SGPL was determined using a process created by Ontario Library Service – North; Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport; and the NORDIK (Northern Ontario Research, Development, Ideas and Knowledge) Institute. Nordik Institute engaged with economists and an advisory committee of six public library CEOs (including one First Nation) to determine key measures and indicators.

Total Economic Benefit $9,538,117  Benefit Per Resident $222 Benefit Per Household $583 Impact Per Open Hour $2,117 Total SROI  $7.96 / 796% The chart above summarizes results from the 2019 SGPL Social Return on Investment Report that used verified library data from its 2018 Annual Report and Survey, 2018 Audited Financial Statements, and 2017 Needs Assessment.

Community Supporting SGPL

Overall use continues to rise.

An increasing demand that SGPL will not be able to meet!

Material Checkouts 343,382 Library Visitors  218,396 Website Visitors 100,214 Program Participants 60,072 Material Downloads 46,069 The chart above represents highlights from the SGPL 2018 Annual Report and Survey.

In 2017, Manasc Isaac Architects completed a community needs assessment for SGPL designed for the year 2032. Currently, SGPL has a square footage of 16,000 ft2; as per Best Practices for Public Libraries in Alberta, the required square footage for SGPL in 2032 at the “enhanced” level (between the minimum “essential” and outstanding “exemplary” levels) is estimated to be 43,966 ft2.

In 2018, a community-led committee created the SGPL Plan of Service (2019-2023) after examining what library programs and services should stay and go, what the library could do more and less; the committee then recommended three priorities to be delivered at a standard of excellence: Visit a Comfortable Place, Practice and Promote Inclusion, and Encourage Literacy.

PathwaysHOME: Spruce Grove's 5 year Strategy to Reduce Poverty and Homelessness (Assetts to Build On, p.13, 2019) New Beginnings – An Indigenous Engagement Improvement Strategy Phase II (Implementation Updates, 2018) City of Spruce Grove Cultural Master Plan (Projected Population Trends, p.11; Cultural Facilities and Space, p.47; 2016) City of Spruce Grove Social Sustainability Plan (Create sustainability through community engagement, pg.51,2016)