Nova Scotia data projectWhich library system lends its collection the most? Rates, not totals, on Nova Scotia's open data
The province publishes annual statistics for its nine regional public library systems. Our students download the file and learn the most useful idea in data work: divide by the right thing before you compare. Every figure below is our own calculation.
Our calculation on Nova Scotia Public Libraries Statistics, 2024-2025 fiscal year (downloaded 22 October 2026): loans per item owned, in-person visits per hour open, and the change in visits since 2022-2023| Library region | Loans per item owned | Visits per hour open | Visits since 2022-2023 |
|---|
| Halifax Public Libraries | 6.99 | 76.3 | +24.7% |
| Annapolis Valley Regional Library | 5.34 | 11.3 | -12.6% |
| South Shore Public Libraries | 4.18 | 18.3 | +1.8% |
| Colchester-East Hants Public Library | 3.77 | 28.3 | +15.4% |
| Cape Breton Regional Library | 2.82 | 13.6 | +18.7% |
| Pictou-Antigonish Regional Library | 2.59 | 23.1 | +24.6% |
| Eastern Counties Regional Library | 2.49 | 2.1 | +24.6% |
| Cumberland Public Libraries | 2.47 | 6.8 | +19.0% |
| Western Counties Regional Library | 1.87 | 13.4 | +1.2% |
The script below produces every number in the table from the downloaded CSV, using only the Python standard library:import csv
with open("tnu4-55e9.csv", encoding="utf-8") as f:
rows = list(csv.DictReader(f))
def number(text):
return float(text.replace(",", ""))
latest = [r for r in rows if r["Year"] == "2024-2025"]
earlier = {r["Library region"]: r for r in rows if r["Year"] == "2022-2023"}
for r in sorted(latest, key=lambda r: number(r["Borrowing"]) / number(r["Items owned"]), reverse=True):
turnover = number(r["Borrowing"]) / number(r["Items owned"])
per_hour = number(r["Annual in-person visits"]) / number(r["Hours open"])
before = number(earlier[r["Library region"]]["Annual in-person visits"])
change = 100 * (number(r["Annual in-person visits"]) - before) / before
print(r["Library region"], round(turnover, 2), round(per_hour, 1), round(change, 1))
1. Pick a denominator
Halifax borrows far more items than any other system, which says little on its own because it also owns far more. Dividing borrowing by items owned gives loans per item, a measure of how hard a collection works. On that measure Halifax still leads, at 6.99, but Annapolis Valley is close behind at 5.34.
2. Compare like with like
Percent change needs the same region at two dates. The script builds a dictionary of 2022-2023 rows keyed by region, then looks each 2024-2025 row up in it. Most systems gained visitors over those two years; Annapolis Valley fell by 12.6%.
3. Question the odd one
Eastern Counties shows 2.1 in-person visits per hour open, far below every other system. The file's definition of hours open includes branches, bookmobiles and satellite locations, so students ask whether the hours and the visits measure the same places before drawing any conclusion.
What not to do with this file
We never add the nine regions together to make a provincial figure; the department publishes regions, and a sum of them is not a number it stands behind. The usage note also warns that closures in the early years and the Same Page shared catalogue, introduced in April 2023, changed borrowing and data collection, which is why our comparison starts in 2022-2023.
A Grade 12 extension: plot public access computers against program attendance for the nine systems and decide whether a straight line is honest with only nine points. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. Data: Nova Scotia Public Libraries Statistics, published by the Department of Communities, Culture, Tourism and Heritage on the Nova Scotia open data portal. The rates, changes and script are ours, and the Province of Nova Scotia does not endorse this page.
