Public views sought on Worcestershire libraries' future

The views of the public are being sought as consultation over the future of Worcestershire’s libraries is set to get under way.

From Monday (October 29), people will be invited to have their say over Worcestershire County Council’s ongoing Libraries Transformation programme.

The programme has seen over £3.7million saved through measures such as community support for libraries, sharing library buildings with other services, making changes in the mobile library service, streamlining staff and management structures, investing in self-service technology and modernising stock buying and delivery.

The council says the change across libraries needs to continue in response to new financial challenges, developments in technology and changing customer needs and expectations.

Conservative councillor Lucy Hodgson, Cabinet Member for Communities, said: "We want as many people as possible to take part in the consultation.

“We want to hear the views of residents on suggested priorities for each library and ideas they may have about which services could be delivered by individual libraries.

"Some of those ideas will help to shape our final proposals."

Service modernisations include the introduction of Open Libraries, which use self-service machines. The council says this means people can still access all services at their local library and they can stay open for longer.

The consultation, which can be found on the county council's website, runs until February 2. A final decision on the future of libraries will be made in spring 2019.

A link to the consultation will be available on the County Council's homepage http://www.worcestershire.gov.uk from Monday morning and on the Libraries and Learning home page http://www.worcestershire.gov.uk/libraries.

Alternatively, paper copies will be available at local libraries.