Sponsored by
Villagers begin battle to save libraries
VILLAGERS have just two weeks to save their libraries as council bosses prepare to make a final decision on the closure of four sites.
Branch services at Lynemouth, Ellington and Hadston are under threat as Northumberland County Council strives to make debt-solving cutbacks.
At a public meeting called to grill councillors over the proposals, residents promised a fightback but expressed fears the plans were 'a done deal'.
County Hall's executive board will vote whether to shut down the branches, along with eight others in Northumberland, at a meeting on November 6.
Parish leaders have demanded a rethink, claiming their libraries are among the most frequently used small facilities in the county.
Cath Davidson, chairman of Lynemouth Parish Council, reported that over 20 per cent of the coastal coalfields' population were regular visitors.
"Our services are well used and would be a big miss," she said.
"We are fighting for our libraries but also every other library. We don't what to see any community lose out.
"We're told that there are alternative libraries at Widdrington Station and Ashington but the County are withdrawing public transport all the time. The services from here are very poor."
Ellington Library, which is open for 11 hours a week, Hadston and Lynemouth are all used as Internet access point in the villages.
Local schools also use the facilities during weekly lessons.
Jean Scott, Chairman of Cresswell Parish Council, said: "This campaign will come down to people power.
"We need to make our voices heard because that's the strongest thing we have."
George Jackson, Chairman of Ellington and Linton Parish Council, added: "As a community we should be saying enough is enough and fight all the way.
"We have very little here in the way of facilities yet we could lose what little we have from this Council."
Speaking at the meeting, the County's Executive member for children's services Jim Wright told residents that no decision had been taken on the libraries' future.
"There are a number of options available for these branches," he said.
"At Ellington these include gifting the library to the community so it can be run by volunteers.
"There is no done deal here. I have no idea how the Executive will vote next month."Nothing is decided at this point."
Northumberland County Council has recommended a raft of public service closures in the last two years as the authority tackles a 40m debt.
But the Council says rural branch libraries are not serving their communities effectively due to limited opening hours, and that many buildings are in a state of disrepair.
It claims a combination of mobile facilities and book points in alternative buildings which are open all day, such as shops, would improve accessibility.
• The 12 libraries earmarked to close in Northumberland are at Hadston, Ellington, Lynemouth, Heddon, Wylam, Corbridge, Cowpen, Newsham, Seaton Sluice, South Beach, Kielder and Haydon Bridge.
All face the axe at County Hall's Executive Board meeting next month.
The four Castle Morpeth sites are well used, according to figures supplied by the Council. At Hadston, 19 per cent of residents are members, at Heddon the figure is 42 per cent, at Ellington 25 per cent of the village are users and at Lynemouth it's 33 per cent.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Blyth
Sunday 05 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 2 C to 7 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: West
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 1 C to 7 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: North west
