Libraries

Councils see 600% boom in digital library memberships

06/04/2020

The number of people signing up to online library services has increased by 600% in some areas since the coronavirus lockdown.

Counties warn about service closures during coronavirus

30/03/2020

Councils are being forced to close or reduce more services in order to divert resources to fighting the coronavirus pandemic.

Bromley's eight-month strike comes to an end

31/01/2020

An eight-month long strike at Bromley’s library services has finally ended following an agreement between Unite and the employer, Greenwich Leisure Limited (GLL).

Council leases library to Holocaust education project

23/12/2019

Cumbria County Council has agreed to provide a Holocaust education project with a long lease to a library building in memory of the Windermere Children.

Research reveals 'shocking' cuts to local services

10/12/2019

Hundreds of youth centres, libraries and public toilets have been closed due to council funding cuts, a trade union has warned.

Decade of austerity sees dramatic drop in library spending

06/12/2019

Ten years of cuts to public services has seen a nearly 30% drop in library spending, new research has revealed.

Library strike ‘longest-running employment dispute of modern times’

13/11/2019

A strike by library workers in Bromley, south east London, is set to enter its sixth month.

Council sets out plan to build 1,000 social homes

12/11/2019

Nottingham City Council has committed to building or buying 1,000 council houses and creating thousands of new jobs over the next decade.

Whitehall announces £250m of culture spending

14/10/2019

The Government has announced £250m of funding for cultural projects, libraries, museums and the creative industries after a decade of cuts.

Leeds to abolish fines for overdue library books

10/10/2019

Leeds is the latest council to join a growing number abolishing fines for overdue library books.

Northants gives green light to 17 community-run libraries

23/08/2019

Northamptonshire County Council has approved the business cases of 17 community-run libraries as part of a plan to safeguard the future of the authority’s library service.

Council charity to run Hertfordshire's libraries

02/08/2019

Hertfordshire County Council is set to save £500,000 in business rates by transferring its libraries to a charity it set up for the purpose.

Council drops plans to close ‘third of libraries’ after outcry

10/07/2019

Essex County Council has done a U-turn on its plan to close nearly a third of its libraries after a consultation received thousands of responses opposing it.

Somerset council signs six ‘community library partnerships’

08/04/2019

Somerset County Council signed six ‘community library partnerships’ last week in a move that will help maintain library services in the face of cuts.

Cheshire East comes top in national library survey

01/02/2019

Cheshire East is celebrating once again taking the top spot in a national survey of library services.

Council spending on cultural services slashed by £400m

28/01/2019

Council spending on cultural resources such as museums, libraries, and the arts has been reduced by almost £400m over the last eight years of austerity, new research has revealed.

Five areas to share £20m cultural development fund

18/01/2019

The five areas to receive £20m of funding to invest in culture have been unveiled by the Government.

Councils slash library budgets by £30m, survey reveals

07/12/2018

The number of libraries across the country has continued to decline as cash-strapped councils reduce their spending on the service, survey reveals.

Study launched into future of public libraries

26/11/2018

A new project to explore how libraries can be funded, managed and delivered in the future has been launched today by Libraries Connected and CILIP.

Neighbourhood services a 'serious concern', report warns

12/10/2018

A new report has highlighted 'serious concerns' over the future quality of neighbourhood services and adult social care unless councils receive adequate funding in the next spending review.

Libraries support people with mental health issues, say council chiefs

11/10/2018

Local government leaders have described how novel library services are helping people cope with a range of mental health problems.

Northamptonshire library closures ruled ‘unlawful’

15/08/2018

The decision to close 21 council-run libraries in Northamptonshire was made unlawfully, a court has ruled.

Funding awarded to deliver six innovative library projects

17/05/2018

Recycled robots and ‘libraries at night’ are just some of the projects chosen to receive funding from the Library Lab initiative.

Council installs CCTV after library sex incident

25/04/2018

Isle of Wight Council has been forced to upgrade security measures at a local library after a couple were caught having sex among the bookshelves.

Bromley library staff strike over ‘paltry’ pay offer

28/03/2018

A number of Bromley’s library staff went on strike today in response to what their union describes as a ‘paltry and insulting’ pay offer.

Council faces government probe into library cuts

20/03/2018

Northamptonshire County Council is facing a government investigation over its decision to close 21 libraries.

County at ‘crisis point’ announces revised budget

28/02/2018

Northamptonshire County Council has announced revised budget savings after being warned by auditors to revise its spending plans.

Council spending on libraries falls by £66m in last year

11/12/2017

Spending on libraries has fallen for the seventh year running because of the squeeze on council funding, according to financial experts.

Online hub created for councils to share innovative ways to invest in culture

17/08/2017

Financially-squeezed councils can now access a specialised online hub designed to help them share innovative ways to invest in culture.

Study reveals drop in frequency of library use

10/04/2017

Although one in two people in the UK continue to use their local library, there has been a significant drop in how often people visit them, new research has revealed.

North Yorkshire libraries to be run by community groups

29/03/2017

Most libraries in North Yorkshire will be run by community groups and those under council management will be supported by volunteers in move to deal with cuts.

Winning libraries for innovation funding are revealed

22/03/2017

A ‘human library’ and an indoor soft play facility around children’s literature are just some of the initiatives to receive money from the Libraries Opportunities for Everyone Innovation fund.

Library services should be more accessible for e-readers, report says

16/01/2017

Council library services should be doing more to encourage people to use e-readers, says survey.

Libraries hit by £25m in council cuts

08/12/2016

Cash-strapped local libraries were hit by £25m worth of council cuts last year, accountancy body finds.

Councils back new vision for library services

01/12/2016

Councils should use libraries to deliver a wider range of public services in a bid to reinvigorate the sector, a new report has argued.

Council proposes closing nearly all of its libraries

27/10/2016

Walsall Council has put forward proposals to close 15 of the 16 libraries in their area in a bid to save £2.9m per year.

Not all libraries should be protected from closure argues charity

26/10/2016

Libraries shouldn’t be given an automatic ‘get out of austerity free’ card just because they are libraries, a charity has argued.

Arts and culture funding to be shifted away from the capital

05/10/2016

Funding for arts and culture outside of London will be increased by 4% by 2022, Arts Council England has announced.

Council library staff trained to help people file police reports

24/08/2016

Library staff at Norfolk County Council will be helping people access police services as part of a six month pilot scheme.

Council’s plans to scrap mobile library ‘retrograde step’, says union

17/06/2016

Union claims children’s literacy is threatened by Greenwich Council’s plans to close the borough’s mobile library service.

London authority handing library to prep school ‘on the cheap’, protesters claim

29/04/2016

A London council has defended its decision to move a library to new premises while leasing the old building to a private school.

Protesters take over London library to halt closure

01/04/2016

Protesters have occupied a library in south London in a bid to prevent it from being shut down temporarily.

Developer selected to regenerate Holborn sites

22/03/2016

A regeneration developer has been selected to redevelop two sites in Holborn, including a public library.

Libraries get funding boost

08/02/2016

The Arts Council have announced new funding for libraries totaling more than half a million pounds.

Councils could be ‘breaking the law’ by closing libraries, warn Unite.

05/02/2016

Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide 'comprehensive and efficient' library services, and may be contravening this by shutting down libraries, the union warned yesterday.

Creating the public library of the future

20/01/2016

Grant Palmer calls for local authorities to re-create and re-establish the public library as a community hub.

Reorganising troubled services

12/01/2016

Tiffany Cloynes outlines some of the legal requirements councils must consider when reorganising services.

Local councils have a ‘statutory duty’ to protect libraries

17/12/2015

Library services are being put at risk through a combination of neglect, short-term thinking and the failure of the Government to carry out their legal duty, according to the My Library By Right (MLBR) campaign.

East Sussex proposes reduction in library services to save £500,000

16/12/2015

East Sussex Council is proposing to reduce library-opening hours in a bid to make annual savings of around £500,000.

Future of council-run libraries under threat after £50m slashed from budgets

09/12/2015

Funding for council-run libraries was slashed by £50m over the last year bringing into question their long-term sustainability, according to the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA).

£2.6m promised to improve Wifi in libraries

26/10/2015

Libraries will receive over £2.6m in funding to provide free WiFi to users, according to Arts Council England.

Libraries funded to run innovative digital inclusion activity

01/10/2015

Sixteen libraries have been awarded funding by Tinder Foundation to run digital inclusion projects as part of a pilot designed to help people improve their IT skills.

Bristol gallery can keep Renoir painting

18/09/2015

Bristol City Council has been told it can keep a Renoir painting which was owned by a Jewish family in Germany and sold at an auction organised by the Nazis

All children to be enrolled at a local library pledges minister

19/08/2015

All children over 8-years old will automatically be enrolled at their local library, in a bid to improve literacy and stop the closure of public libraries.

Funding boost for free WiFi in libraries

28/07/2015

All libraries in England will be able to offer free WiFi access from March 2016, following £7.1m funding from Arts Council England.

Libraries urged to find innovative fund raising strategies

03/06/2015

Libraries need to become ‘risk-taking’ fundraisers if they are to stay afloat yet must retain their ‘core ethos’, a report says.

‘Ay up my duck!’ - Dolly Parton gives council exclusive new song

21/05/2015

‘Nine-to-Five’ superstar Dolly Parton has praised Nottingham City Council for its support of child reading, gifting the town hall an exclusive new song to help local fundraising.

Local politicians more trusted than Whitehall finds poll

29/04/2015

A new poll has revealed that residents trust their local politicians twice as much as their Westminster counterparts.

Councils predict 2015 will be a year of transformation

24/03/2015

Council bosses believe that while 2015 will be a year of deeper cuts, it will also mark the start of a step-change in the way they deliver services, according to new research.

Cameron voices ‘anger’ over Birmingham Library closure plan

20/03/2015

David Cameron has expressed ‘anger’ over planned cuts to opening hours at Birmingham Library put forward by the city council.

Pickles gives Enterprising Libraries a cash boost

12/03/2015

Libraries that help local people set up their own business have been given a £650,000 funding boost.

Protesters disrupt Birmingham’s budget meeting

04/03/2015

Protesters interrupted Birmingham’s annual budget meeting yesterday, shouting ‘shame on you’ as the council approved a £105m cuts package.

Talks begin to protect Birmingham’s library service

07/01/2015

Birmingham City Council has welcomed a proposal for the Library of Birmingham to become a regional centre for the British Library.

Survey shows extent of pressure on library services

11/12/2014

The number of libraries, visitors and books borrowed has continued to decline in the past year, according to new figures.

Minister unlikely to intervene on Sheffield’s library changes

31/10/2014

Sheffield Council's plan to allow volunteers to run its 15 branch libraries have been branded ‘thorough and well considered’ by the Government.

City’s libraries poised for volunteer takeover

29/09/2014

Volunteers are poised to take over almost half of a city’s libraries as part of cost cutting plans to save £1.6m.

County’s library closure plans put to public again

03/09/2014

Lincolnshire County Council’s has been forced to put new library closure plans to public consultation after original ideas were blocked.

Weather-resistant Fiona wins top library award

15/08/2014

A mobile library relief driver who worked through gales and heavy rain has won a top national award.

Liverpool warns 11 libraries at risk of closure

11/08/2014

Liverpool City Council has warned 11 libraries are at risk of closure unless other ways of delivering services can be found.

Welsh councils urged to increase ‘vital’ library services

24/07/2014

Library services in Wales are improving community life and delivering essential services, according to findings from a Welsh National Assembly committee.

Council told to renew thinking on libraries

18/07/2014

A council that proposed to put volunteers in charge of libraries has been ordered to review its plans by the High Court.

Statutory services could face 25% funding cut at Liverpool

07/02/2014

Liverpool City Council’s three-year budget could force statutory services to slash spending by a quarter as part of £156m savings plans.

Library staff numbers continue downward spiral

11/12/2013

Library staff numbers have continued to fall, according to data compiled by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA).

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