LIBRARIES in Northumberland look set to see changes in how they operate with a consultation due to be launched on their future.
It was revealed last month that Northumberland County Council was planning to cut £200,000 from its budget for library services over the next three years.
The council’s cabinet agreed to make the savings which involved creating a “consolidated, more sustainable, network of buildings, increased collaborative provision and a wider digital offer”. It agreed that £100,000 would be spent initially to help implement the changes.
This week, the county council said it was in the process of appointing an external company to carry out a public consultation on the plans and, once in place, it was expected to run for up to 12 weeks.
Concerns were raised this summer when residents learned that Allendale library would be closed an extra day per week over the summer holidays due to staffing issues.
And Allendale and Bellingham libraries have previously had reason to fear closure, when in 2009 they were placed at risk due to budget cuts, although neither was forced to close.
However, Hexham East councillor Cath Homer, cabinet member for culture, arts, leisure and tourism, said there was no intention to close libraries.
She said: “We have got amazing staff and some really good stories coming from local libraries such as Wylam and Haydon Bridge. As well as that, the number of children who have been taking part in the Summer Reading Challenge has been steadily increasing.
“While this has been going on, we have also seen a 50 per cent increase in people wanting to reserve books and read them digitally. The whole point of the consultation is to talk to people and find out what they want from their libraries. There is no intention there to take away the library service but it has to be sustainable going forward.”
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