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Brian Ashley, formerly Nottingham City Council's director of culture, will take on the role of Arts Council England director with a focus on libraries, following the re-organisation announced last year.
He is expected to take on the role in July 2013 when the changes are implemented, and will be based in Nottingham.
The current director for libraries, Nicky Morgan, will be leaving her role, which has been altered to create both a regional as well as art-specific focus.
Ashley joined ACE in 2011, focusing on the Art Council's strategic relationships in the East Midlands with local authorities, local enterprise partnerships and universities. He has overseen the commissioning and delivery of the "Elemental Force" project which was designed to highlight the arts contribution to tourism.
He spent his career as a chartered librarian working in Nottinghamshire, Coventry, Warwickshire and Nottingham, becoming chief librarian for Nottingham City Council when it became a unitary authority in 1998. He helped coordinate private sector-sponsored schemes such as Books for Babies and Books Change Lives, as well as helping introduce free internet access to the city's libraries and creating co-located services alongside health and learning facilities.
In 2009, he became regional manager for the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council before joining ACE.