THE woman behind a Bradford book charity has described planned cuts to library hours as “sad” – arguing libraries are key to developing children’s love of reading.
As part of a swathe of budget cuts, Bradford Council is planning to make £175,000 worth of cuts to its library service.
This will be achieved by reducing opening hours at the district’s 10 Council run libraries by up to 15 per cent.
At a meeting of the Council’s Executive on Wednesday afternoon members voted to move ahead with the proposals – with consultations on the reduced hours soon to begin.
The report to members acknowledged the changes could lead to redundancies.
It said the cuts could see libraries close early or open late on some days – or close for an hour over lunch.
Officers assured councillors at Wednesday’s meeting that the volunteer run libraries in the district, as well as “hybrid” libraries that are run by a mix of Council staff and volunteers, would not be affected.
Christine May, Manager of Bradford Libraries, said: “This option would achieve savings and have less of an impact on our statutory service that other options might.”
Another cut will see the Council ending its policy of providing national newspapers in its libraries.
This change is expected to save £11,000 a year.
Councillor Debbie Davies (Cons, Baildon) asked if there was any detail on how many people read the national newspapers in libraries each day. She said: “Many people come to libraries for social reasons, some can’t afford to buy a paper each day.”
She pointed out that some library users would not have the computer skills to access the online newspaper system the libraries offer.
Mrs May said: “As a service we do have a role in encouraging people to become digitally enabled. We can’t afford to offer both (paper and digital copies) at the current time.”
Jan Winter set up Canterbury Imagination Library – a charity that provides children in some of Bradford’s poorest areas with free books.
Jan WInter (Image: T&A)
In response to the library cuts she said while she understood the pressures on the Council’s finances: “It's always sad to see any reduction in library services as access to free books in a safe space is so important to developing a love of reading.
“Parents and carers are doing so much good for their children by taking them to libraries and sharing books with them.
“The new Government says it has a focus on the importance of Early Years and I hope there might be more funding for young children, including improved access to high quality experiences in their local libraries.”
UNISON Yorkshire and Humberside regional organiser Michael Parkinson said: “The council clearly needs to find ways of saving money, but making redundancies in libraries would severely damage the level of service provided.
“I’d urge council leaders to work with trade unions to find ways of saving money without people losing their jobs, or vital services being impacted.”
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