Feb 16th
Northants not safe yet, Salford moving libraries into hospitals, Essex cuts
Aberdeenshire – some, (brief mention here seems to suggest all but this very unlikely)
Anglesey – 4
Angus – 4 libraries closed this year (April) to be possibly replaced by a mobile. More info here
Argyll and Bute – 3 libraries and mobile library.
Barnet – some – public consultation here
Barnsley – up to 8
Bedfordshire – 1 mobile to go
Bexley – 3 and 1 mobile (3 from a list of 5 will go, plus one mobile) (this is the five) (£1m – 16% cut) (merge with Bromley?) ()
Birmingham – 39 (three libraries lose hours so Tower Hill can remain open) (school library service to close)(all branch libraries under review, £200m super library being built)
Blackburn with Darwen – 1 mobile (reduced opening hours) cut, opening hours reduced, bookfund cut.
Bromley – (KAB talking books cut)
Buckinghamshire – up to 14 to close or be staffed by volunteers (this article says 11)(£688k cut)
Bury – 1 (1 other reduced hours) – Manchester Evening News
Calderdale – Some? (£350k cut inc.12 jobs, £200k stock)
Cambridgeshire – 13 (36% cut in funding, £3.2m, closures down from previously reported 19) (mobile services already “slashed”) (£1.1m cut) (school library service closed)
Camden – several plus one mobile library (£2 million cut)
Carmarthenshire – 5
Central Bedfordshire – one mobile library to go
Conwy – 7 (out of 12)
Croydon – Up to 6 (public gets to choose which), (£690k saving)
Doncaster – (one final step needed on 21st Feb before officially confirmed) 14, (may also be taken out of council control) (over 50% cut in funding)
Dorset – up to 20 (out of 34) to close or be given to community groups (£143k off bookfund). Dorset is the sole council to receive an actual increase in funding for 2010/11. (£800k cut for libraries)
Dumfries – 7
Durham – some (£1.4m cut)(or is it £1.5m?)
Ealing – At least 2 possibly more
East Sussex – (£313k cut) (less books bought)
Edinburgh – (£550k cut)(possible cut in mobiles)
Falkirk – (transferred to Trust)
Flintshire – 5 and at least one mobile
Gateshead – some (school library service, music library, AIRS talking newspaper under threat)
Gloucestershire – Up to 18 and 6 mobiles – 10 to close or go to volunteers. 7 to close if they don’t find a partner (43% total cut in funding). (Cinderford saved)(revised proposals here) A further 11 reduced to 3.5 days a week. 100 library jobs to go say UNISON, 40 FTE to go says council, inc 36 managers cut to 9, 3.5 FTE librarian posts cut (to 10)
Greenwich – (could be turned into a Trust) (school library service closed)
Hammersmith and Fulham – 2 and 1 mobile (record office to charge for access, access to be suspended) (£310k cut)
Hampshire – 13 mobiles (58 FTE jobs to go) (and mobile libraries cut within two miles of each branch, this report says 18FTE to go)(libraries merged with IT/property etc) Source of number of mobiles is UNISON Hampshire, No extra overtime or weekend pay
Haringey – (staff cuts)
Harrow – (34 FTE to go)(self-service machines to increase)
Hartlepool – 2 (out of 7) to close (another to merge with community centre, all library’s hours cut)
Herefordshire – (new Ledbury Library delayed) (no branches to close but mobile library review)
Hertfordshire – 5 mobiles (2011 Confirmed – opening hours to be cut by one third – from 2236 hours down to 1575) (mobile libraries cut) – At least one library (Borehamwood) faces a 40% cut. (£580k cut in first year, £1.4m after) (cuts confirmed) (some mobile stops saved)
Highland – (Wick Library to close and merge with school library) (may move to being in a Trust) (this report says no closures) (suggestion that professional staff are being lost – a source is needed).
Hounslow – initial plan to close 8 cancelled after public consultation, £300k cut in bookfund, some libraries may still be at risk as cuts “postponed”.
Inverclyde – some
Isle of Wight – 5 (out of 11) (£100k offered as temporary extra)
Kent – some (volunteers to be asked to run some) (83 FTE to go as self-service comes in)- Isle of Thanet one of areas hardest hit (School library service closed)
Lambeth – 4 branches and 2 mobiles (setting up a trust “which will give you a chance to run libraries”)
Lancashire – 2 mobile libaries (plus 16% staffing cut)
Leeds – Up to 20 (out of 52) – council says 20 closures are not about cuts but to make service viable.
Leicestershire – NB This information is under doubt. I have received a call saying this article relates to Leicester. Article, though, seems to be indicate it is Leicestershire. No libraries are down for closure according to his article, although they could all/some be transferred to a trust or privatised (merge of lending/reference- 14 FTE jobs lost).
Leicestershire – (£250k cut in bookfund and hours)
Lewisham – 5 (41% cut – £800k)
Liverpool – some
Milton Keynes – 2
Newport – 7
Norfolk – (£1.5m over 3 yrs proposed cut inc opening hours cut, staffing cut, bookfund cut, less mobile visits)
Northern Ireland – 10 (denials up to 30 could close)
Northamptonshire – Up to 8 libraries originally under threat,. Libraries given a reprieve but still apparently under longer term threat. (Cuts to management and support).
Northumberland – some
North Lanarkshire – 1 (closed March 2010)
North Norfolk – some (c. £1m reduction)
North Somerset – 1 closed, 2 proposed, volunteers may run libraries. Weston Mercury update
North Yorkshire – 24 (out of 42) to close or be staffed by volunteers, 9 mobiles to go off road, surviving libraries could have funding cut to share out with any community-run libraries established. (£2.3m cut from £7.5m total)
Nottingham – 1 (3 libraries to close, 2 new ones to open) (computer use to be charged)(1 library closed)
Oldham – (increase in volunteers, merging, cuts)
Oxfordshire – 20 – (£2m) list of those under threat here, Oxford Central hours extended to 7 days per week . also, Record Office cuts.
Redbridge – 5 out of 12 may close, another may relocate (£2.3m cut). Goodmayes saved.
Renfrewshire – 1 (1 library to move into smaller sites in community centres)
Richmond – 1 (£351k cut) (service may be privatised)
Rochdale – 1 (some library managers to to go in first phase of cuts)
Rutland – (6 libraries to have reduced hours, staff cut)
Salford – 3 – some libraries to move to sports centres or provide space for community groups (2 to have reduced hours)
Sandwell – some
Sefton – 3 (consultation here)
Sheffield – (30% cut expected, £2.5m) (no closures, opening hours reduced)
Shropshire – 2 and 3 mobiles(reference library to merge with central library)
Somerset – 2011 Confirmed – 11 (out of 34) will be closed/offered to community groups over 2 years. 4 (out of 6) mobile libraries will also go. 25% cut in funding. Full (revised) plans here (20% cut in opening hours). Rethink on mobiles may happen – article here. Public will be asked for “voluntary contributions”.
Southampton – 2
Stoke – 2 and 1 mobile library, (ends RNIB service)
Suffolk – 29 (out of 44) – (consultation here, £2m cut)
Swansea – some
Thanet – some
Thurrock – (may close all libraries on Mondays or reduce opening hours, £350k cut)(RNIB subscription ends)
Tower Hamlets – (staff made to reapply for their own jobs -23 library staff replaced)
Wakefield – at least 2 , new central library but local closures
Wandsworth – 1 (mention in Guardian here) plus reduction in hours in others.
Warrington – (2011 Confimed) 2 and 1 mobile library confirmed . More info here. Journals stopped also, £25k off staff. £10k off reference.
West Dunbartonshire – 3 (some staff losses too)
West Sussex – Some (5 FTE lost, some librarians pay reduced to library assistant)
Westminster – (Marylebone may never reopen)
Wigan – Up to 15 out of 17 (£1.1m cut off £4m budget)
Wiltshire – 10 (plus reductions in hours in all but one of the others) (26 FTE posts have gone in Dec 2010 inc. 9 out of 13 community librarians)(cuts include a £940k library opened Dec 2010)(self-service in all)
Worcestershire – some (Pershore library to move out of town centre) , contact centres may combine with libraries
Authorities which have announced there will be no library closures (2011 financial year)
Anglesey – 4 libraries earmarked for closure have apparently been (temporarily) saved. Brighton. Barking and Dagenham. Cheshire West and Chester. Cornwall – (one stop shops moving into them, book supply being done differently to save money, no guarantee for 2012) (23% cut in library budget, 102 hours p.w. cut). Coventry (but less opening hours, fees to rise). Derby. Devon (may have reduced opening hours, less mobile stops, no new Exeter Library – although this article suggests mobile library service has improved). BBC article confirms no closures. (“brutal” cuts to Exeter Record Office). Edinburgh (£550 cut) (pledge to keep open is for the lifetime of the administration). Essex(but other cuts – see list above). Haringey . Harrow (some increase in hours, more self-service but less staff). Highland (but other cuts – see list above). Hillingdon. (number of libraries actually increasing here). Kirklees. Leicestershire (but opening hours and bookfund cut – £250k). Lincolnshire. Merton – (£118k cut – 2 libraries will have reduced hours but reprieved from threatened closure). Moray – (may move to being in a Trust, another article here). Newcastle. Norfolk – (CONFIRMED. no closures but staffing cut, bookfund cut, opening hours cut, less mobile visits). North Ayrshire. North East Lincolnshire. Nottinghamshire – no plans to close any branches but massive reductions in opening hours. Plymouth (opening hours to reduce, managers to go). Poole. Portsmouth. Southampton. Staffordshire (free internet access also retained). Sheffield (cuts in opening hours). Swindon. Trafford – (but mobile library staff will be replaced by volunteers). Walsall. Windsor and Maidenhead. Wirral
Northants not safe yet, Salford moving libraries into hospitals, Essex cuts
Feb 15th
– – no closures but substantial cuts to opening hours of many
Northamptonshire has announced it’s libraries are safe from closure so fantastic … but, if you read on, it’s not so rosy. A review of the service is being undertaken, none are guaranteed as safe and, in fact, all sorts of things could happen to them. Similarly, a cursory reading of the situation in Salford would suggest libraries are doing OK – but look closer and it is nowhere near as good. Essex are not closing any static libraries but they are . Therefore, the headline figure of library closure numbers which one could have expected to have gone down has actually gone up today.
David Cameron and Ed Milliband are both quoted in the national press as having mentioned libraries. David, while talking to Liverpool about how there was no need for front-line services to close, mentioned how Oxfordshire are saving citizen’s advice bureaux. Oddly, he neglected to mention how they are also looking to close 20 libraries. Ed Milliband pointed out that libraries are fundamental to the Big Society.
– Southend Standard
Norfolk – no closures but £60m of cuts for council – BBC
Northamptonshire – U-turn on libraries but a “Big Society Library Service” wanted – Scribble City Central
North Yorkshire – Unfair and disproportionate cuts in libraries – Alan Gibbons
North Yorkshire – Proposed closures do not make sense – Voices For The Library
Surrey – wifi installed in libraries while 11 under threat – BBC
“Bail-Ins” protests in banks starts on Saturday – UK Uncut – “From next Saturday onwards, intrepid UK Uncut volunteers up and down the land will be bailing into the banks and setting up libraries, forests, hospitals, schools, playgrounds, leisure centres and everything else that needs saving.” Protest outside Barclays today. and acton list for forthcoming weeks is here.
Libraries (our wonderful libraries!) and the best rejection slip ever – Write for your life
MLA letter to Somerset campaigners – Alan Gibbons
School libraries – a right – CILIP
Self-Service costs – Ventnor Blog (inc. description by RFID consultant)
We Love Libraries Flash Mob – Youtube
Aberdeenshire – some, (brief mention here seems to suggest all but this very unlikely)
Anglesey – 4
Angus – 4 libraries closed this year (April) to be possibly replaced by a mobile. More info here
Argyll and Bute – 3 libraries and mobile library.
Barnet – some – public consultation here
Barnsley – up to 8
Bedfordshire – 1 mobile to go
Bexley – 3 and 1 mobile (3 from a list of 5 will go, plus one mobile) (this is the five) (£1m – 16% cut) (merge with Bromley?) ()
Birmingham – 39 (three libraries lose hours so Tower Hill can remain open) (school library service to close)(all branch libraries under review, £200m super library being built)
Blackburn with Darwen – 1 mobile (reduced opening hours) cut, opening hours reduced, bookfund cut.
Bromley – (KAB talking books cut)
Buckinghamshire – up to 14 to close or be staffed by volunteers (this article says 11)(£688k cut)
Bury – 1 (1 other reduced hours) – Manchester Evening News
Calderdale – Some? (£350k cut inc.12 jobs, £200k stock)
Cambridgeshire – 13 (36% cut in funding, £3.2m, closures down from previously reported 19) (mobile services already “slashed”) (£1.1m cut) (school library service closed)
Camden – several plus one mobile library (£2 million cut)
Carmarthenshire – 5
Central Bedfordshire – one mobile library to go
Conwy – 7 (out of 12)
Croydon – Up to 6 (public gets to choose which), (£690k saving)
Doncaster – (one final step needed on 21st Feb before officially confirmed) 14, (may also be taken out of council control) (over 50% cut in funding)
Dorset – up to 20 (out of 34) to close or be given to community groups (£143k off bookfund). Dorset is the sole council to receive an actual increase in funding for 2010/11. (£800k cut for libraries)
Dumfries – 7
Durham – some (£1.4m cut)(or is it £1.5m?)
Ealing – At least 2 possibly more
East Sussex – (£313k cut) (less books bought)
Edinburgh – (£550k cut)
Essex – 1 mobile (s, 21 jobs to go)
Falkirk – (transferred to Trust)
Flintshire – 5 and at least one mobile
Gateshead – some (school library service, music library, AIRS talking newspaper under threat)
Gloucestershire – Up to 18 and 6 mobiles – 10 to close or go to volunteers. 7 to close if they don’t find a partner (43% total cut in funding). (Cinderford saved)(revised proposals here) A further 11 reduced to 3.5 days a week. 100 library jobs to go say UNISON, 40 FTE to go says council, inc 36 managers cut to 9, 3.5 FTE librarian posts cut (to 10)
Greenwich – (could be turned into a Trust) (school library service closed)
Hammersmith and Fulham – 2 and 1 mobile (record office to charge for access, access to be suspended) (£310k cut)
Hampshire – 13 mobiles (58 FTE jobs to go) (and mobile libraries cut within two miles of each branch, this report says 18FTE to go)(libraries merged with IT/property etc) Source of number of mobiles is UNISON Hampshire, No extra overtime or weekend pay
Haringey – (staff cuts)
Harrow – (34 FTE to go)(self-service machines to increase)
Hartlepool – 2 (out of 7) to close (another to merge with community centre, all library’s hours cut)
Herefordshire – (new Ledbury Library delayed) (no branches to close but mobile library review)
Hertfordshire – 5 mobiles (2011 Confirmed – opening hours to be cut by one third – from 2236 hours down to 1575) (mobile libraries cut) – At least one library (Borehamwood) faces a 40% cut. (£580k cut in first year, £1.4m after) (cuts confirmed) (some mobile stops saved)
Highland – (Wick Library to close and merge with school library) (may move to being in a Trust) (this report says no closures) (suggestion that professional staff are being lost – a source is needed).
Hounslow – initial plan to close 8 cancelled after public consultation, £300k cut in bookfund, some libraries may still be at risk as cuts “postponed”.
Inverclyde – some
Isle of Wight – 5 (out of 11) (£100k offered as temporary extra)
Kent – some (volunteers to be asked to run some) (83 FTE to go as self-service comes in)- Isle of Thanet one of areas hardest hit (School library service closed)
Lambeth – 4 branches and 2 mobiles (setting up a trust “which will give you a chance to run libraries”)
Lancashire – 2 mobile libaries (plus 16% staffing cut)
Leeds – Up to 20 (out of 52) – council says 20 closures are not about cuts but to make service viable.
Leicestershire – NB This information is under doubt. I have received a call saying this article relates to Leicester. Article, though, seems to be indicate it is Leicestershire. No libraries are down for closure according to his article, although they could all/some be transferred to a trust or privatised (merge of lending/reference- 14 FTE jobs lost).
Leicestershire – (£250k cut in bookfund and hours)
Lewisham – 5 (41% cut – £800k)
Liverpool – some
Milton Keynes – 2
Newport – 7
Norfolk – (£1.5m over 3 yrs proposed cut inc opening hours cut, staffing cut, bookfund cut, less mobile visits)
Northern Ireland – 10 (denials up to 30 could close)
Northamptonshire – Up to 8 libraries originally under threat,. Libraries given a reprieve but still apparently under longer term threat. (Cuts to management and support).
Northumberland – some
North Lanarkshire – 1 (closed March 2010)
North Norfolk – some (c. £1m reduction)
North Somerset – 1 closed, 2 proposed, volunteers may run libraries. Weston Mercury update
North Yorkshire – 24 (out of 42) to close or be staffed by volunteers, 9 mobiles to go off road, surviving libraries could have funding cut to share out with any community-run libraries established. (£2.3m cut from £7.5m total)
Nottingham – 1 (3 libraries to close, 2 new ones to open) (computer use to be charged)(1 library closed)
Oldham – (increase in volunteers, merging, cuts)
Oxfordshire – 20 – (£2m) list of those under threat here, Oxford Central hours extended to 7 days per week . also, Record Office cuts.
Redbridge – 5 out of 12 may close, another may relocate (£2.3m cut). Goodmayes saved.
Renfrewshire – 1 (1 library to move into smaller sites in community centres)
Richmond – 1 (£351k cut) (service may be privatised)
Rochdale – 1 (some library managers to to go in first phase of cuts)
Rutland – (6 libraries to have reduced hours, staff cut)
Salford – 3 – some libraries to move to sports centres or provide space for community groups (2 to have reduced hours)
Sandwell – some
Sefton – 3 (consultation here)
Sheffield – (30% cut expected, £2.5m) (no closures, opening hours reduced)
Shropshire – 2 and 3 mobiles(reference library to merge with central library)
Somerset – 11 (out of 34) will be closed/offered to community groups over 2 years. 4 (out of 6) mobile libraries will also go. 25% cut in funding. Full (revised) plans here (20% cut in opening hours). Rethink on mobiles may happen – article here. Public will be asked for “voluntary contributions”.
Southampton – 2
Stoke – 2 and 1 mobile library, (ends RNIB service)
Suffolk – 29 (out of 44) – (consultation here, £2m cut)
Swansea – some
Thanet – some
Thurrock – (may close all libraries on Mondays or reduce opening hours, £350k cut)(RNIB subscription ends)
Tower Hamlets – (staff made to reapply for their own jobs -23 library staff replaced)
Wakefield – at least 2 , new central library but local closures
Wandsworth – 1 (mention in Guardian here) plus reduction in hours in others.
Warrington – (2011 Confimed) 2 and 1 mobile library confirmed . More info here. Journals stopped also, £25k off staff. £10k off reference.
West Dunbartonshire – 3 (some staff losses too)
West Sussex – Some (5 FTE lost, some librarians pay reduced to library assistant)
Westminster – (Marylebone may never reopen)
Wigan – Up to 15 out of 17 (£1.1m cut off £4m budget)
Wiltshire – 10 (plus reductions in hours in all but one of the others) (26 FTE posts have gone in Dec 2010 inc. 9 out of 13 community librarians)(cuts include a £940k library opened Dec 2010)(self-service in all)
Worcestershire – some (Pershore library to move out of town centre) , contact centres may combine with libraries
Authorities which have announced there will be no library closures (2011 financial year)
Anglesey – 4 libraries earmarked for closure have apparently been (temporarily) saved. Brighton. Barking and Dagenham. Cheshire West and Chester. Cornwall – (one stop shops moving into them, book supply being done differently to save money, no guarantee for 2012) (23% cut in library budget, 102 hours p.w. cut). Coventry (but less opening hours, fees to rise). Derby. Devon (may have reduced opening hours, less mobile stops, no new Exeter Library – although this article suggests mobile library service has improved). BBC article confirms no closures. (“brutal” cuts to Exeter Record Office). Edinburgh (£550 cut) (pledge to keep open is for the lifetime of the administration). Essex(but other cuts – see list above). Haringey . Harrow (some increase in hours, more self-service but less staff). Highland (but other cuts – see list above). Hillingdon. (number of libraries actually increasing here). Kirklees. Leicestershire (but opening hours and bookfund cut – £250k). Lincolnshire. Merton – (£118k cut – 2 libraries will have reduced hours but reprieved from threatened closure). Moray – (may move to being in a Trust, another article here). Newcastle. Norfolk – (CONFIRMED. no closures but staffing cut, bookfund cut, opening hours cut, less mobile visits). North Ayrshire. North East Lincolnshire. Nottinghamshire – no plans to close any branches but massive reductions in opening hours. Plymouth (opening hours to reduce, managers to go). Poole. Portsmouth. Southampton. Staffordshire (free internet access also retained). Sheffield (cuts in opening hours). Swindon. Trafford – (but mobile library staff will be replaced by volunteers). Walsall. Windsor and Maidenhead. Wirral
Feb 15th
– Northamptonshire – 8 libraries temporarily saved from closure but report implies they are still under threat. Number therefore remains unchanged. See Summary.
“Bail-Ins” protests in banks starts on Saturday – UK Uncut – “From next Saturday onwards, intrepid UK Uncut volunteers up and down the land will be bailing into the banks and setting up libraries, forests, hospitals, schools, playgrounds, leisure centres and everything else that needs saving.” Protest outside Barclays today. and acton list for forthcoming weeks is here.
Aberdeenshire – some, (brief mention here seems to suggest all but this very unlikely)
Anglesey – 4
Angus – 4 libraries closed this year (April) to be possibly replaced by a mobile. More info here
Argyll and Bute – 3 libraries and mobile library.
Barnet – some – public consultation here
Barnsley – up to 8
Bedfordshire – 1 mobile to go
Bexley – 3 and 1 mobile (3 from a list of 5 will go, plus one mobile) (this is the five) (£1m – 16% cut) (merge with Bromley?) ()
Birmingham – 39 (three libraries lose hours so Tower Hill can remain open) (school library service to close)(all branch libraries under review, £200m super library being built)
Blackburn with Darwen – 1 mobile (reduced opening hours) cut, opening hours reduced, bookfund cut.
Bromley – (KAB talking books cut)
Buckinghamshire – up to 14 to close or be staffed by volunteers (this article says 11)(£688k cut)
Bury – 1 (1 other reduced hours) – Manchester Evening News
Calderdale – Some? (£350k cut inc.12 jobs, £200k stock)
Cambridgeshire – 13 (36% cut in funding, £3.2m, closures down from previously reported 19) (mobile services already “slashed”) (£1.1m cut) (school library service closed)
Camden – several plus one mobile library (£2 million cut)
Carmarthenshire – 5
Central Bedfordshire – one mobile library to go
Conwy – 7 (out of 12)
Croydon – Up to 6 (public gets to choose which), (£690k saving)
Doncaster – (one final step needed on 21st Feb before officially confirmed) 14, (may also be taken out of council control) (over 50% cut in funding)
Dorset – up to 20 (out of 34) to close or be given to community groups (£143k off bookfund). Dorset is the sole council to receive an actual increase in funding for 2010/11. (£800k cut for libraries)
Dumfries – 7
Durham – some (£1.4m cut)(or is it £1.5m?)
Ealing – At least 2 possibly more
East Sussex – (£313k cut) (less books bought)
Edinburgh – (£550k cut)
Essex – 1 mobile (extensive opening hours cuts, 21 jobs to go)
Falkirk – (transferred to Trust)
Flintshire – 5 and at least one mobile
Gateshead – some (school library service, music library, AIRS talking newspaper under threat)
Gloucestershire – Up to 18 and 6 mobiles – 10 to close or go to volunteers. 7 to close if they don’t find a partner (43% total cut in funding). (Cinderford saved)(revised proposals here) A further 11 reduced to 3.5 days a week. 100 library jobs to go say UNISON, 40 FTE to go says council, inc 36 managers cut to 9, 3.5 FTE librarian posts cut (to 10)
Greenwich – (could be turned into a Trust) (school library service closed)
Hammersmith and Fulham – 2 and 1 mobile (record office to charge for access, access to be suspended) (£310k cut)
Hampshire – 13 mobiles (58 FTE jobs to go) (and mobile libraries cut within two miles of each branch, this report says 18FTE to go)(libraries merged with IT/property etc) Source of number of mobiles is UNISON Hampshire, No extra overtime or weekend pay
Haringey – (staff cuts)
Harrow – (34 FTE to go)(self-service machines to increase)
Hartlepool – 2 (out of 7) to close (another to merge with community centre, all library’s hours cut)
Herefordshire – (new Ledbury Library delayed) (no branches to close but mobile library review)
Hertfordshire – 5 mobiles (2011 Confirmed – opening hours to be cut by one third – from 2236 hours down to 1575) (mobile libraries cut) – At least one library (Borehamwood) faces a 40% cut. (£580k cut in first year, £1.4m after) (cuts confirmed) (some mobile stops saved)
Highland – (Wick Library to close and merge with school library) (may move to being in a Trust) (this report says no closures) (suggestion that professional staff are being lost – a source is needed).
Hounslow – initial plan to close 8 cancelled after public consultation, £300k cut in bookfund, some libraries may still be at risk as cuts “postponed”.
Inverclyde – some
Isle of Wight – 5 (out of 11) (£100k offered as temporary extra)
Kent – some (volunteers to be asked to run some) (83 FTE to go as self-service comes in)- Isle of Thanet one of areas hardest hit (School library service closed)
Lambeth – 4 branches and 2 mobiles (setting up a trust “which will give you a chance to run libraries”)
Lancashire – 2 mobile libaries (plus 16% staffing cut)
Leeds – Up to 20 (out of 52) – council says 20 closures are not about cuts but to make service viable.
Leicestershire – NB This information is under doubt. I have received a call saying this article relates to Leicester. Article, though, seems to be indicate it is Leicestershire. No libraries are down for closure according to his article, although they could all/some be transferred to a trust or privatised (merge of lending/reference- 14 FTE jobs lost).
Leicestershire – (£250k cut in bookfund and hours)
Lewisham – 5 (41% cut – £800k)
Liverpool – some
Milton Keynes – 2
Newport – 7
Norfolk – (£1.5m over 3 yrs proposed cut inc opening hours cut, staffing cut, bookfund cut, less mobile visits)
Northern Ireland – 10 (denials up to 30 could close)
Northamptonshire – Up to 8 libraries originally under threat,. Libraries given a reprieve but still apparently under longer term threat. (Cuts to management and support).
Northumberland – some
North Lanarkshire – 1 (closed March 2010)
North Norfolk – some (c. £1m reduction)
North Somerset – 1 closed, 2 proposed, volunteers may run libraries. Weston Mercury update
North Yorkshire – 24 (out of 42) to close or be staffed by volunteers, 9 mobiles to go off road, surviving libraries could have funding cut to share out with any community-run libraries established. (£2.3m cut from £7.5m total)
Nottingham – 1 (3 libraries to close, 2 new ones to open) (computer use to be charged)(1 library closed)
Oldham – (increase in volunteers, merging, cuts)
Oxfordshire – 20 – (£2m) list of those under threat here, Oxford Central hours extended to 7 days per week . also, Record Office cuts.
Redbridge – 5 out of 12 may close, another may relocate (£2.3m cut). Goodmayes saved.
Renfrewshire – 1 (1 library to move into smaller sites in community centres)
Richmond – 1 (£351k cut) (service may be privatised)
Rochdale – 1 (some library managers to to go in first phase of cuts)
Rutland – (6 libraries to have reduced hours, staff cut)
Salford – 3 – some libraries to move to sports centres or provide space for community groups (2 to have reduced hours)
Sandwell – some
Sefton – 3 (consultation here)
Sheffield – (30% cut expected, £2.5m) (no closures, opening hours reduced)
Shropshire – 2 and 3 mobiles(reference library to merge with central library)
Somerset – 11 (out of 34) will be closed/offered to community groups over 2 years. 4 (out of 6) mobile libraries will also go. 25% cut in funding. Full (revised) plans here (20% cut in opening hours). Rethink on mobiles may happen – article here. Public will be asked for “voluntary contributions”.
Southampton – 2
Stoke – 2 and 1 mobile library, (ends RNIB service)
Suffolk – 29 (out of 44) – (consultation here, £2m cut)
Swansea – some
Thanet – some
Thurrock – (may close all libraries on Mondays or reduce opening hours, £350k cut)(RNIB subscription ends)
Tower Hamlets – (staff made to reapply for their own jobs -23 library staff replaced)
Wakefield – at least 2 , new central library but local closures
Wandsworth – 1 (mention in Guardian here) plus reduction in hours in others.
Warrington – (2011 Confimed) 2 and 1 mobile library confirmed . More info here. Journals stopped also, £25k off staff. £10k off reference.
West Dunbartonshire – 3 (some staff losses too)
West Sussex – Some (5 FTE lost, some librarians pay reduced to library assistant)
Westminster – (Marylebone may never reopen)
Wigan – Up to 15 out of 17 (£1.1m cut off £4m budget)
Wiltshire – 10 (plus reductions in hours in all but one of the others) (26 FTE posts have gone in Dec 2010 inc. 9 out of 13 community librarians)(cuts include a £940k library opened Dec 2010)(self-service in all)
Worcestershire – some (Pershore library to move out of town centre) , contact centres may combine with libraries
Authorities which have announced there will be no library closures (2011 financial year)
Anglesey – 4 libraries earmarked for closure have apparently been (temporarily) saved. Brighton. Barking and Dagenham. Cheshire West and Chester. Cornwall – (one stop shops moving into them, book supply being done differently to save money, no guarantee for 2012) (23% cut in library budget, 102 hours p.w. cut). Coventry (but less opening hours, fees to rise). Derby. Devon (may have reduced opening hours, less mobile stops, no new Exeter Library – although this article suggests mobile library service has improved). BBC article confirms no closures. (“brutal” cuts to Exeter Record Office). Edinburgh (£550 cut) (pledge to keep open is for the lifetime of the administration). Essex(but other cuts – see list above). Haringey . Harrow (some increase in hours, more self-service but less staff). Highland (but other cuts – see list above). Hillingdon. (number of libraries actually increasing here). Kirklees. Leicestershire (but opening hours and bookfund cut – £250k). Lincolnshire. Merton – (£118k cut – 2 libraries will have reduced hours but reprieved from threatened closure). Moray – (may move to being in a Trust, another article here). Newcastle. Norfolk – (CONFIRMED. no closures but staffing cut, bookfund cut, opening hours cut, less mobile visits). North Ayrshire. North East Lincolnshire. Nottinghamshire – no plans to close any branches but massive reductions in opening hours. Plymouth (opening hours to reduce, managers to go). Poole. Portsmouth. Southampton. Staffordshire (free internet access also retained). Sheffield (cuts in opening hours). Swindon. Trafford – (but mobile library staff will be replaced by volunteers). Walsall. Windsor and Maidenhead. Wirral
9 Year Old Girl starts national petition and an email from the MLA boss
Feb 14th
– Thurrock – considers closing all libraries on a Monday or reduce opening hours of smaller libraries
Roy Clare CBE, chief executive officer of the quango MLA sent an email today about a young library campaigner. A 9 year old girl had written to David Cameron to save her libraries and then, when this was deflected, Jeremy Hunt, about saving libraries – who said she should talk to the relevant council. At this point, Jessica gave up and complained to the “First News” who have started a petition.
Roy asks, presumably ironically, if anyone has (a) explained the state of the national finances to Jessica, (b) does she know that councils are accountable in law and that governmental intervention is very rarely used “and only in the most extreme cases”, (c) if she has asked her relevant council [the logo on the door behind suggests it is Buckinghamshire] if it has a plausible and efficient strategy, (d) that a national petition is “froth without substance” unless addressed at the offending council, and (e) only local lobbying and local campaigns could bring changes. He ends the email with..”after all, when tearful teenagers wrote to the PM about the break-up of Take That more than a decade ago No.10 couldn’t fix that either.”
Leaving aside apparently equating dismantling the national library service to the fate of a pop group this can be seen, in a certain light, as actually a handy help sheet for local campaigners about what to do. However, Mr Clare does come across as slightly … [insert your own words here] … talking about the efforts of a nine year old girl unhappy with the closure of her two nearest libraries. It also is another piece of evidence suggesting he is unlikely to advocate many interventions to the Government – which is a shame as Ed Vaizey has indicated he will not act without the MLA’s recommendation. Having said that, there are some encouraging signs.
David Cameron on the BBC Ten O’ Clock News today was directly asked whether people would blame him or the council for closing a library (or a SureStart Centre). He answered that clearly people are going to blame him.
Brent – Philip Pullman slams council over plans to shut Kensal Rise – London Evening Standard
Dorset – campaigners urge merge of Dorset, Bournemouth and Poole – Bournemouth Echo
Gloucestershire – scrutiny committee farce, councillors slow hand-clapped – FoGL
Leeds – don’t shelve our library! 100 protesters take out 2000 books – Pontefract and Castleford Express
Lewisham – what to do with five closed Lewisham libraries? – Londonist
Milton Keynes – Statistics used to threaten Stony Strafford are flawed, and challenged – About My Area
Milton Keynes – Critique of the porposal to close Stony Strafford – FoSSL
Northern Ireland – denials that up to 30 libraries may close – Belfast Telegraph
North Yorkshire – proposed closures “don’t make sense” – Voices For The Library
Oxfordshire – libary cuts may be unlawful says councillor ““We note as a matter of law that the statutory duty of the council under the 1964 Act cannot be substituted, in whole or in part, by any Big Society initiative.” – Henley Standard
Surrey – Elderly readers furious at mobile library cut – Surrey Herald
Big Society – BBC Newnight “Ever since I heard the term “Big Society” I’ve seen my nearest library as the thermometer for its success”
Chetham’s library – 350 years of being a public library – Daily Mail
Government may take direct control over libraries – BookSeller
One library saved … but what about hundreds more? – Guardian
Schoolgirl asks David Cameron to save our libraries – First News
Ten misperceptions about libraries – Heydeadguy
UK libraries face devastation – World Socialist Web Site
Would I have discovered Nevinson and Ravillious? – Voices for the Library
Jeremy Hunt may take over Libraries
Feb 12th
– plus 1 – Nottingham – one library closed in Sep 2010 (S)
– plus 2 – Ealing – Hanwell and Perivale are feared to be under threat (S)
Strong rumours in the Sunday Times and other sources are circulating that Jeremy Hunt is taking over the control of the Libraries brief with Ed Vaizey taking a more junior role. The Government may step in and take over libraries in areas where the councils are not showing “restraint” with cuts in libraries. Libraries are, due to massive national protest and media attention, now firmly on the news agenda and the Government is taking note. Who would have thought that three months ago? (S)
Croydon – hundreds protest against closures – Croydon Guardian (S) Film of protests here (S) Malcolm Wicks MP for Croydon North speaks here (S)
Doncaster – Library review called in to Overview and Scrutiny – Save Doncaster Libraries (S)
Ealing – 2 libraries in particular feared to be under threat – Ealing Today (S)
Gloucestershire – it’s a “political stunt” says Council Leader – This is Gloucestershire (S)
Gloucestershire – libraries packed with campaigners – Wilts and Glos Standard
Greenwich – Protesters take to the streets – News Shopper (S)
Isle of Wight – Tim Coates to meet with council – Ventnor Blog (S)
Lambeth – library where “John Major did his homework” is facing closure – BBC News (S)
– Manchester Evening News (S)
Sheffield – 800 job losses “not the end of the world” says Leader – Library Workers for a Brighter Future
Somerset – protests to save Watchet library – This is the West Country (S)
Stirling – how the library saved her life – Voices For The Library
Suffolk – library closure protestors battle on – Diss Express (S)
Bad week for the big society – Mirror – ““helping ourselves” has become in the eyes of many “fending for ourselves” (S)
Book-Rap by Maria Tolly “We all agree that the place to be is the library”
Britains’ do-it-yourself government – Globe and Mail (Canada) “the inexpert but enthusiastic will take over libraries” (S)
Ed Miliband – Big Society: a cloak for the small state – Independent on Sunday “Mr Cameron should visit the local libraries in my constituency. These are not some monolithic institutions of crude Conservative caricature. They have classes for new mums and babies, after-school activities for young people, clubs for the elderly. They are owned by government but they nurture community. And now many of them are threatened with closure.” (S)
Lisa Nandy MP “Bring the tories to book over library closures” – Tribune
Ministers may grab control of libraries if councils fail to act with restraint – Sunday Times (S) behind paywall.
Politics UK – BBC World Service (9:35 to 19:00) featuring Kate Mosse “the library is the heart of the community … the one free space”. Adam Smith Institute say its “nostalgia”, “we’re all connected” and “we have huge access to books” and advocates private company control. Two different worlds (S).
Tim Coates versus CILIP and, possibly, more – Good Library Blog
Unhappy ending for books – Express (Comment) – “we should be wary of creating a world in which the younger generation has no real access to the written word” (S)
Withdrawal Method – SchNews
Reasons to be cheerful – except in Carmarthenshire and Nottingham
Feb 10th
– plus 1 – Nottingham – (Carlton Road, St Ann’s and Bulwell). I will count this as one closure on the grounds that the three will be replaced with two new libraries. Charging for computers introduced.
– minus 4 – Isle of Wight – new proposals mean 4 saved, 5 (out of 11) still under threat
– plus 5 – Carmarthenshire – five under threat (Pontyates, Pontyberem, Dafen, Tumble and Llanybydder)
– Sheffield – none to close, opening hours to reduce
– minus 1 – Kirklees – 1 previously feared as under threat, council has declared none will close this year.
Bexley – £1m (out of £6m) cut, 5 under threat – News Shopper
Carmarthenshire – five under threat – This is South Wales
Cheshire West and Chester – no library closures – Northwich Guardian
Conwy – Schoolboy leads fight to save Penrhyn – North Wales Weekly News
Essex – opening hours cuts – Yellow Advertiser
Flintshire – Deeside residents protest in 1000 petition – Flintshire Chronicle
Gloucestershire – mystery surrounds talks with “partners” Is it Glos Police? – FoGL
Gloucestershire – support for volunteers “seriously underestimated – FoGL
Gloucestershire – Sally Grindley adds support – FoGL
Hammersmith & Fulham – access to public records cut/suspended – Fulham Chronicle
Hertfordshire – Cuffley against near halving of it’s library’s hours – Hoddesdon News
Hounslow – Brentford Library Read-In “wonderful support” – Hounslow Chronicle
Hounslow – protest march to take place – Hounslow Chronicle
Hounslow – protest meeting held – Hounslow Chronicle
Hounslow – reporters take to the streets for petition – Hounslow Chronicle
Isle of Wight – lifeline offered – BookSeller
Isle of Wight – verbatim speech details new proposals – Ventnor Blog
Kirklees – none to close – Examiner
Leeds – Holbeck Library closure “another nail in the coffin” Guardian (Leeds Today)
North East Lincolnshire – none to close – This is Grimsby
North Yorkshire – Easingwold closure would cut town’s lifeline – Press
North Yorkshire – Liberals (NB not Lib Dems) to propose keeping open libraries but with less hours – Gazette
Northern Ireland – Save Greystone Library – Antrim Times
Nottingham – 3 libraries threatened with closure, 2 new will be built – This is Nottingham
17 Lib Dem Leaders compain – Coalition faces local revolt over cuts (inc. libraries) – Reuters ““Rather than assist the country’s recovery by making public sector savings in a way that can protect local economies and the front line, the cuts are so structured that they will do the opposite,” the Lib Dems wrote in a letter to the Times.”
David Cameron’s literary agent protests against library closures – First Post (The Week)
Ditch the library cuts – Socialist Worker
Grandstanding councils playing politics with front-line budgest says Pickles – 24dash
Hilary Benn says councils have a statutory requirement to provide a quality service – DeHaviland (paywall)
Libraries need the cash more – Financial Times (2/9ths of Bob Diamond’s bonus would save every library in North Yorkshire)
Library should not be a glorified Starbucks – Spiked (argument versus libraries being cafes/community centres)
Lib Dem grassroots turn on Government – Spectator “The numerous protests outside town halls, community centres, libraries and so forth are indicative of something deeper than tribal political activism.”
Aberdeenshire – some, (brief mention here seems to suggest all but this very unlikely)
Anglesey – 4
Angus – 4 libraries closed this year (April) to be possibly replaced by a mobile. More info here
Argyll and Bute – 3 libraries and mobile library.
Barnet – some – public consultation here
Barnsley – up to 8
Bedfordshire – 1 mobile to go
Bexley – 3 (3 from a list of 5 will go, plus one mobile) (this is the five) (£1m – 16% cut)
Birmingham – 39 (three libraries lose hours so Tower Hill can remain open) (school library service to close)(all branch libraries under review, £200m super library being built)
Blackburn with Darwen – 1 mobile (reduced opening hours) cut, opening hours reduced, bookfund cut.
Bromley – (KAB talking books cut)
Buckinghamshire – up to 14 to close or be staffed by volunteers (this article says 11)(£688k cut)
Bury – 1 (1 other reduced hours) – Manchester Evening News
Calderdale – Some? (£350k cut inc.12 jobs, £200k stock)
Cambridgeshire – 13 (36% cut in funding, £3.2m, closures down from previously reported 19) (mobile services already “slashed”) (£1.1m cut) (school library service closed)
Camden – several plus one mobile library (£2 million cut)
Carmarthenshire – 5
Central Bedfordshire – one mobile library to go
Conwy – 7 (out of 12)
Croydon – Up to 6 (public gets to choose which), (£690k saving)
Doncaster – (one final step needed on 21st Feb before officially confirmed) 14, (may also be taken out of council control) (over 50% cut in funding)
Dorset – up to 20 (out of 34) to close or be given to community groups (£143k off bookfund). Dorset is the sole council to receive an actual increase in funding for 2010/11. (£800k cut for libraries)
Dumfries – 7
Durham – some (£1.4m cut)(or is it £1.5m?)
Ealing – some
East Sussex – (£313k cut) (less books bought)
Edinburgh – (£550k cut)
Essex – 1 mobile (extensive opening hours cuts, 21 jobs to go)
Falkirk – (transferred to Trust)
Flintshire – 5 and at least one mobile
Gateshead – some (school library service, music library, AIRS talking newspaper under threat)
Gloucestershire – Up to 18 and 6 mobiles – 10 to close or go to volunteers. 7 to close if they don’t find a partner (43% total cut in funding). (Cinderford saved)(revised proposals here) A further 11 reduced to 3.5 days a week. 100 library jobs to go say UNISON, 40 FTE to go says council, inc 36 managers cut to 9, 3.5 FTE librarian posts cut (to 10)
Greenwich – (could be turned into a Trust) (school library service closed)
Hammersmith and Fulham – 2 and 1 mobile (record office to charge for access, access to be suspended) (£310k cut)
Hampshire – 13 mobiles (58 FTE jobs to go) (and mobile libraries cut within two miles of each branch, this report says 18FTE to go)(libraries merged with IT/property etc) Source of number of mobiles is UNISON Hampshire, No extra overtime or weekend pay
Haringey – (staff cuts)
Harrow – (34 FTE to go)(self-service machines to increase)
Hartlepool – 2 (out of 7) to close (another to merge with community centre, all library’s hours cut)
Herefordshire – (new Ledbury Library delayed) (no branches to close but mobile library review)
Hertfordshire – 5 mobiles (2011 Confirmed – opening hours to be cut by one third – from 2236 hours down to 1575) (mobile libraries cut) – At least one library (Borehamwood) faces a 40% cut. (£580k cut in first year, £1.4m after) (cuts confirmed) (some mobile stops saved)
Highland – (Wick Library to close and merge with school library) (may move to being in a Trust) (this report says no closures) (suggestion that professional staff are being lost – a source is needed).
Hounslow – initial plan to close 8 cancelled after public consultation, £300k cut in bookfund, some libraries may still be at risk as cuts “postponed”.
Inverclyde – some
Isle of Wight – 5 (out of 11) (£100k offered as temporary extra)
Kent – some (volunteers to be asked to run some) (83 FTE to go as self-service comes in)- Isle of Thanet one of areas hardest hit (School library service closed)
Lambeth – 4 branches and 2 mobiles (setting up a trust “which will give you a chance to run libraries”)
Lancashire – 2 mobile libaries (plus 16% staffing cut)
Leeds – Up to 20 (out of 52) – council says 20 closures are not about cuts but to make service viable.
Leicestershire – NB This information is under doubt. I have received a call saying this article relates to Leicester. Article, though, seems to be indicate it is Leicestershire. No libraries are down for closure according to his article, although they could all/some be transferred to a trust or privatised (merge of lending/reference- 14 FTE jobs lost).
Leicestershire – (£250k cut in bookfund and hours)
Lewisham – 5 (41% cut – £800k)
Liverpool – some
Milton Keynes – 2
Newport – 7
Norfolk – (£1.5m over 3 yrs proposed cut inc opening hours cut, staffing cut, bookfund cut, less mobile visits)
Northern Ireland – 10
Northamptonshire – 8 out of 38 may close, 2 mobile libraries to end. Cuts to management and support also.
Northumberland – some
North Ayrshire – 3
North Lanarkshire – 1 (closed March 2010)
North Norfolk – some (c. £1m reduction)
North Somerset – 1 closed, 2 proposed, volunteers may run libraries. Weston Mercury update
North Yorkshire – 24 (out of 42) to close or be staffed by volunteers, 9 mobiles to go off road, surviving libraries could have funding cut to share out with any community-run libraries established. (£2.3m cut from £7.5m total)
Nottingham – 1 (3 libraries to close, 2 new ones to open) (computer use to be charged)
Oldham – (increase in volunteers, merging, cuts)
Oxfordshire – 20 – (£2m) list of those under threat here, Oxford Central hours extended to 7 days per week
Redbridge – 5 out of 12 may close, another may relocate.
Renfrewshire – 1 (1 library to move into smaller sites in community centres)
Richmond – 1 (£351k cut) (service may be privatised)
Rochdale – 1 (some library managers to to go in first phase of cuts)
Rutland – (6 libraries to have reduced hours, staff cut)
Salford – some
Sandwell – some
Sefton – 3 (consultation here)
Sheffield – (30% cut expected, £2.5m) (no closures, opening hours reduced)
Shropshire – 2 and 3 mobiles(reference library to merge with central library)
Somerset – 11 (out of 34) will be closed/offered to community groups over 2 years. 4 (out of 6) mobile libraries will also go. 25% cut in funding. Full (revised) plans here (20% cut in opening hours). Rethink on mobiles may happen – article here. Public will be asked for “voluntary contributions”.
Southampton – 2
Stoke – 2 and 1 mobile library, (ends RNIB service)
Suffolk – 29 (out of 44) – (consultation here, £2m cut)
Swansea – some
Thanet – some
Thurrock – (RNIB subscription ends)
Tower Hamlets – (staff made to reapply for their own jobs -23 library staff replaced)
Wakefield – at least 2 , new central library but local closures
Walsall – 6 (30 FTE) Count cut from 8 to 6 due to article here
Waltham Forest – some
Walthamstow – some
Wandsworth – 1 (mention in Guardian here) plus reduction in hours in others.
Warrington – (2011 Confimed) 2 and 1 mobile library confirmed . More info here. Journals stopped also, £25k off staff. £10k off reference.
West Dunbartonshire – 3 (some staff losses too)
West Sussex – Some (5 FTE lost, some librarians pay reduced to library assistant)
Westminster – (Marylebone may never reopen)
Wigan – Up to 15 out of 17 (£1.1m cut off £4m budget)
Wiltshire – 10 (plus reductions in hours in all but one of the others) (26 FTE posts have gone in Dec 2010 inc. 9 out of 13 community librarians)(cuts include a £940k library opened Dec 2010)(self-service in all)
Worcestershire – some (Pershore library to move out of town centre) , contact centres may combine with libraries
Authorities which have announced there will be no library closures (2011 financial year)
Anglesey – 4 libraries earmarked for closure have apparently been (temporarily) saved. Brighton. Barking and Dagenham. Cheshire West and Chester. Cornwall – (one stop shops moving into them, book supply being done differently to save money, no guarantee for 2012) (23% cut in library budget, 102 hours p.w. cut). Coventry (but less opening hours, fees to rise). Devon (may have reduced opening hours, less mobile stops, no new Exeter Library – although this article suggests mobile library service has improved). BBC article confirms no closures. (“brutal” cuts to Exeter Record Office). Edinburgh (£550 cut) (pledge to keep open is for the lifetime of the administration). Essex(but other cuts – see list above). Haringey . Harrow. Highland (but other cuts – see list above). Hillingdon. (number of libraries actually increasing here). Kirklees. Leicestershire (but opening hours and bookfund cut – £250k). Lincolnshire. Merton – (£118k cut – 2 libraries will have reduced hours but reprieved from threatened closure). Moray – (may move to being in a Trust, another article here). Newcastle. Norfolk – (no closures but staffing cut, bookfund cut, opening hours cut, less mobile visits). North East Lincolnshire. Nottinghamshire – no plans to close any branches but massive reductions in opening hours. Plymouth (opening hours to reduce, managers to go). Poole. Portsmouth. Southampton. Staffordshire (free internet access also retained). Sheffield (cuts in opening hours). Swindon. Trafford – (but mobile library staff will be replaced by volunteers). Windsor and Maidenhead. Wirral
“Only the Prime Minister could blame libraries for closing themselves” Ed Miliband at PMQs
Feb 9th
– plus eight – Aberdeen to close 8 (out of 16). Report says closing 8 would allow the remaining eight to have more opening hours.
David Cameron during Prime Minister’s Question Time –
Dorset – Minette Walters joins the fight – Dorset Echo ““If the Victorians – who invented libraries – believed that rural dwellers deserved the same access to fact and fiction as town dwellers, and have the same ability to understand it, then shame on you for thinking otherwise.”
Gloucestershire – councillor says don’t worry, there’s still school libraries -FoGL
Harrow – libraries will stay open but with more self-service, less staff – Harrow Times
Isle of Wight – Council reduces the reduction – BBC
Oxfordshire – West Oxfordshire Council leader (and David Cameron’s election agent) joins protest against library funding cuts – Witney Gazette
Southampton – no libraries to close – Daily Echo
Don’t say we can’t afford them any more.”
Labout votes against the local government finance settlement, citing unfairness inc. libraries – Labour
Simple way to get public libraries open – Institute of Economic Affairs (same organisation, different person to the speaker on “Your and Yours” yesterday, the “simple way” is to ask everyone for a charitable donation).
Speech against library closures – Artsfunding
Well-fought fight – Spectator – (on David Cameron on libraries …”To suggest that some kind of freemarket Darwinism should overtake cherished public services is a reckless move)
Aberdeenshire – some, (brief mention here seems to suggest all but this very unlikely)
Anglesey – 4
Angus – 4 libraries closed this year (April) to be possibly replaced by a mobile. More info here
Argyll and Bute – 3 libraries and mobile library.
Barnet – some – public consultation here
Barnsley – up to 8
Bedfordshire – 1 mobile to go
Bexley – 3 (3 from a list of 5 will go, plus one mobile) (this is the five)
Birmingham – 39 (three libraries lose hours so Tower Hill can remain open) (school library service to close)(all branch libraries under review, £200m super library being built)
Blackburn with Darwen – 1 mobile (reduced opening hours) cut, opening hours reduced, bookfund cut.
Bromley – (KAB talking books cut)
Buckinghamshire – up to 14 to close or be staffed by volunteers (this article says 11)(£688k cut)
Bury – 1 (1 other reduced hours) – Manchester Evening News
Calderdale – Some? (£350k cut inc.12 jobs, £200k stock)
Cambridgeshire – 13 (36% cut in funding, £3.2m, closures down from previously reported 19) (mobile services already “slashed”) (£1.1m cut) (school library service closed)
Camden – several plus one mobile library (£2 million cut)
Central Bedfordshire – one mobile library to go
Conwy – 7 (out of 12)
Croydon – Up to 6 (public gets to choose which), (£690k saving)
Doncaster – (one final step needed on 21st Feb before officially confirmed) 14, (may also be taken out of council control) (over 50% cut in funding)
Dorset – up to 20 (out of 34) to close or be given to community groups (£143k off bookfund). Dorset is the sole council to receive an actual increase in funding for 2010/11. (£800k cut for libraries)
Dumfries – 7
Durham – some (£1.4m cut)(or is it £1.5m?)
Ealing – some
East Sussex – (£313k cut) (less books bought)
Edinburgh – (£550k cut)
Essex – 1 mobile (extensive opening hours cuts, 21 jobs to go)
Falkirk – (transferred to Trust)
Flintshire – 5 and at least one mobile
Gateshead – some (school library service, music library, AIRS talking newspaper under threat)
Gloucestershire – Up to 18 and 6 mobiles – 10 to close or go to volunteers. 7 to close if they don’t find a partner (43% total cut in funding). (Cinderford saved)(revised proposals here) A further 11 reduced to 3.5 days a week. 100 library jobs to go say UNISON, 40 FTE to go says council, inc 36 managers cut to 9, 3.5 FTE librarian posts cut (to 10)
Greenwich – (could be turned into a Trust) (school library service closed)
Hammersmith and Fulham – 2 and 1 mobile (record office to charge for access) (£310k cut)
Hampshire – 13 mobiles (58 FTE jobs to go) (and mobile libraries cut within two miles of each branch, this report says 18FTE to go)(libraries merged with IT/property etc) Source of number of mobiles is UNISON Hampshire, No extra overtime or weekend pay
Haringey – (staff cuts)
Harrow – (34 FTE to go)(self-service machines to increase)
Hartlepool – 2 (out of 7) to close (another to merge with community centre, all library’s hours cut)
Herefordshire – (new Ledbury Library delayed) (no branches to close but mobile library review)
Hertfordshire – 5 mobiles (2011 Confirmed – opening hours to be cut by one third – from 2236 hours down to 1575) (mobile libraries cut) – At least one library (Borehamwood) faces a 40% cut. (£580k cut in first year, £1.4m after) (cuts confirmed) (some mobile stops saved)
Highland – (Wick Library to close and merge with school library) (may move to being in a Trust) (this report says no closures) (suggestion that professional staff are being lost – a source is needed).
Hounslow – initial plan to close 8 cancelled after public consultation, £300k cut in bookfund, some libraries may still be at risk as cuts “postponed”.
Inverclyde – some
Isle of Wight – 9 (out of 11) (£100k offered as temporary extra)- most serious cuts I am aware of (consultation ends 7 Feb)
Kent – some (volunteers to be asked to run some) (83 FTE to go as self-service comes in)- Isle of Thanet one of areas hardest hit (School library service closed)
Kirklees – at least 1
Lambeth – 4 branches and 2 mobiles (setting up a trust “which will give you a chance to run libraries”)
Lancashire – 2 mobile libaries (plus 16% staffing cut)
Leeds – Up to 20 (out of 52) – council says 20 closures are not about cuts but to make service viable.
Leicestershire – NB This information is under doubt. I have received a call saying this article relates to Leicester. Article, though, seems to be indicate it is Leicestershire. No libraries are down for closure according to his article, although they could all/some be transferred to a trust or privatised (merge of lending/reference- 14 FTE jobs lost).
Leicestershire – (£250k cut in bookfund and hours)
Lewisham – 5 (41% cut – £800k)
Liverpool – some
Milton Keynes – 2
Newport – 7
Norfolk – (£1.5m over 3 yrs proposed cut inc opening hours cut, staffing cut, bookfund cut, less mobile visits)
Northern Ireland – 10
Northamptonshire – 8 out of 38 may close, 2 mobile libraries to end. Cuts to management and support also.
Northumberland – some
North Ayrshire – 3
North Lanarkshire – 1 (closed March 2010)
North Norfolk – some (c. £1m reduction)
North Somerset – 1 closed, 2 proposed, volunteers may run libraries. Weston Mercury update
North Yorkshire – 24 (out of 42) to close or be staffed by volunteers, 9 mobiles to go off road, surviving libraries could have funding cut to share out with any community-run libraries established. (£2.3m cut from £7.5m total)
Oldham – (increase in volunteers, merging, cuts)
Oxfordshire – 20 – (£2m) list of those under threat here, Oxford Central hours extended to 7 days per week
Redbridge – 5 out of 12 may close, another may relocate.
Renfrewshire – 1 (1 library to move into smaller sites in community centres)
Richmond – 1 (£351k cut) (service may be privatised)
Rochdale – 1 (some library managers to to go in first phase of cuts)
Rutland – (6 libraries to have reduced hours, staff cut)
Salford – some
Sandwell – some
Sefton – 3 (consultation here)
Sheffield – (30% cut expected, £2.5m)
Shropshire – 2 and 3 mobiles(reference library to merge with central library)
Somerset – 11 (out of 34) will be closed/offered to community groups over 2 years. 4 (out of 6) mobile libraries will also go. 25% cut in funding. Full (revised) plans here (20% cut in opening hours). Rethink on mobiles may happen – article here. Public will be asked for “voluntary contributions”.
Southampton – 2
Stoke – 2 and 1 mobile library, (ends RNIB service)
Suffolk – 29 (out of 44) – (consultation here, £2m cut)
Swansea – some
Thanet – some
Thurrock – (RNIB subscription ends)
Tower Hamlets – (staff made to reapply for their own jobs -23 library staff replaced)
Wakefield – at least 2 , new central library but local closures
Walsall – 6 (30 FTE) Count cut from 8 to 6 due to article here
Waltham Forest – some
Walthamstow – some
Wandsworth – 1 (mention in Guardian here) plus reduction in hours in others.
Warrington – (2011 Confimed) 2 and 1 mobile library confirmed . More info here. Journals stopped also, £25k off staff. £10k off reference.
West Dunbartonshire – 3 (some staff losses too)
West Sussex – Some (5 FTE lost, some librarians pay reduced to library assistant)
Westminster – (Marylebone may never reopen)
Wigan – Up to 15 out of 17 (£1.1m cut off £4m budget)
Wiltshire – 10 (plus reductions in hours in all but one of the others) (26 FTE posts have gone in Dec 2010 inc. 9 out of 13 community librarians)(cuts include a £940k library opened Dec 2010)(self-service in all)
Worcestershire – some (Pershore library to move out of town centre) , contact centres may combine with libraries
Authorities which have announced there will be no library closures (2011 financial year)
Anglesey – 4 libraries earmarked for closure have apparently been (temporarily) saved. Brighton. Barking and Dagenham. Cornwall – (one stop shops moving into them, book supply being done differently to save money, no guarantee for 2012) (23% cut in library budget, 102 hours p.w. cut). Coventry (but less opening hours, fees to rise). Devon (may have reduced opening hours, less mobile stops, no new Exeter Library – although this article suggests mobile library service has improved). BBC article confirms no closures. (“brutal” cuts to Exeter Record Office). Edinburgh (£550 cut) (pledge to keep open is for the lifetime of the administration). Essex(but other cuts – see list above). Haringey . Harrow. Highland (but other cuts – see list above). Hillingdon. (number of libraries actually increasing here). Leicestershire (but opening hours and bookfund cut – £250k). Lincolnshire. Merton – (£118k cut – 2 libraries will have reduced hours but reprieved from threatened closure). Moray – (may move to being in a Trust, another article here). Newcastle. Norfolk – (no closures but staffing cut, bookfund cut, opening hours cut, less mobile visits). Nottinghamshire – no plans to close any branches but massive reductions in opening hours. Plymouth (opening hours to reduce, managers to go). Poole. Portsmouth. Southampton. Staffordshire (free internet access also retained). Swindon. Trafford – (but mobile library staff will be replaced by volunteers). Windsor and Maidenhead. Wirral
Cuts in Manchester, “You and Yours” hour-long libraries special
Feb 9th
The stand out today is the cuts in Manchester, of which the cut of five libraries has featured prominently in all the media coverage I have seen.
You and Yours did an hour-long discussion on libraries featuring Annie Mauger from CILIP, the mayor of Doncaster and a spokesman from the IEA who said at the start that “Books are cheap so that’s not a problem for anybody” and that “amateurs can do the job” of librarians. “Fury doesn’t even come close” to the reaction that the public gave to his views that everyone should have a Kindle and that grandmother should be sent SD cards. The programme was overwhelmed with emails and “Uniquely, they all say the same thing, libraries are not just about books”. People phoning in also seemed very much in support of libraries. 2 out of 700 were in favour of closing libraries. 2. Out. Of. 700. Listen if you can.
Edinburgh – pledges not to close any libraries but £550k still to be cut – New Scotsman
Manchester – Five libraries to close, all to close on Fridays and Sundays – Manchester Evening News
Northamptonshire – day of action to stop libraries closing – Northantset
Surrey – Mobile libraries facing the chop – This is Surrey Today
Council Central Service Charges and libraries – Good Library Blog
“The MLA have been advising councils to close libraries” (Tim Coates); Vince Cable joins protests
Feb 7th
– Western Isles – opening hours reductions.
The “You and Yours phone in” on Radio Four (tomorrow, Tuesday 12 Noon) will feature a discussion about public libraries with Annie Mauger, the president of the library professional association CILIP. CILIP have produced a report stating that Westminster is failing libraries, that fully 20% (600) could close and that charging for libraries (being proposed for volunteer-run libraries) is unlawful under the Act. CILIP also produce a pile of reasons why closing libraries is a poor idea, such as this report released on Saturday. Perhaps Vince Cable will get on board after his joining the library campaign in Richmond?
“My impression is that everywhere we have been involved the MLA have been advising councils to close libraries. They appear to be more interested in how to handle the closures in such a way that such action will somehow lie within the law and they are handing out tens of thousands of pounds to consultants to confirm this view.
My deduction is that the MLA are pushing down the hill the snowball we are trying so hard to roll up it and that they see their role as working for councils rather than for local people. My view is also that during the months since May, when it was so important to get these matters right, the MLA, LGA and DCMS have totally funked the questions about budgets and efficiency, even though the DCLG and Eric Pickles have asked everyone to look at these so closely.”
Bolton – Please save libraries – Bolton News
Richmond – Vince Cable joins protest – This is Local London
Western Isles – Cuts in opening hours by one day per week and during Summer – Hebrides News
Why libraries must be saved – Mirror “Libraries make the world fairer. They are the place where a child with no books at home can go to discover, learn and dream.” (Tony Parsons)
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