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Time ticking on library consultation
The biggest shake-up of library services in Bristol for a generation is being planned.
Bristol City Council said it needed to cut £1.1m from the library budget, by redesigning the service and the public consultation to help set out the future of the service closes at the beginning of February.
Only 5.6% of the city and surrounding area’s 437,500 population use the library services, meaning the council spends £208 a year on each user.
is needed now More than ever
A 12 week consultation service comes to an end on February 2nd and more than 3,000 surveys have already been completed.
Councillor Daniella Radice, Assistant Mayor for Neighbourhoods, said the consultation is a “real opportunity” to help shape the future of Bristol’s libraries and they “particularly want to hear from you if you don’t use libraries at the moment”.
“We are also really keen to hear from young people – I spent a lot of time in libraries when I was young, but we didn’t have the internet then. Then again, there are lots of things that a library can do that the internet can’t.
“Libraries are vital, and treasured hubs for our communities, but they need to adapt to remain sustainable.”
Mayor George Ferguson said “no decisions or proposals have been developed” until the consultation is complete.
He added that “only a tiny minority of Bristol citizens use libraries regularly,” but it was a “great opportunity for all to help develop our library services and to make quality learning space more accessible to everyone in Bristol”.
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