Derbyshire council welcomes more views on library service plans after over 1,300 responses

Derbyshire council is urging more people to take part in its public consultation into proposed changes to its library services – which include possible reduced hours – to help save up to £1m after it has already received over 1,300 responses.

The county council unveiled proposals in its draft Derbyshire Public Library Service Strategy for 2024 to 2029 – entitled A Modern Library Service for Derbyshire – and it launched a 12-week consultation which finishes on November 2 before it makes any final decisions.

Council Leader, Cllr Barry Lewis, has stated no libraries will close under the current authority and Deputy Leader, Cllr Simon Spencer, has stated the proposals reinforce the council’s commitment to libraries with a ‘pragmatic and measured approach’ as part of efforts to help balance a forecast multi-million budget deficit.

Cllr Lewis, who is also the Cabinet Member for Strategic Leadership, Culture, Tourism and Climate Change, said: “It is of great importance to us and to our residents that we continue to offer a strong library service which is accessible to all who want it.

“I welcome the number of responses we’ve had already to the consultation as we are very keen to get as many views as possible on these proposals before final decisions are made in the new year.

“We are confident that the many positive proposals contained in the draft strategy will ensure library services are maintained and investment is made where it is needed to not only secure but also enhance this key service for years to come.”

The council has identified a planned reduction to the Library Service budget of £625,000 between April, 2025, to March, 2029, as well as £285,000 of savings which need to be carried forward from previous years to achieve a savings total of £910,000 between 2024 and 2029.

Cllr Lewis has said the aim of the proposals is to keep library buildings open while creating a modern and sustainable service with proposed changes supporting budget savings and reflecting changing patterns of library use while ensuring the service remains accessible, efficient and cost-effective.

Derbyshire includes 45 libraries of which the council controls 43 and two are community-managed in Tideswell and Woodville.

The council is considering reducing library hours, moves to news sites in some cases, and improving the digital provision for its library service.

Proposals include: Reducing opening hours by an average of 10per cent reflecting each library’s busiest times and not closing neighbouring libraries on the same day; Ensuring all libraries open for a time on a Saturday with larger libraries opening until 6pm twice a week; Removing reservation charges for book and talking book requests where the item is either in print or in stock, and removing charges for borrowing talking books; And merging the mobile service and home library service with a fleet of smaller, lower carbon vehicles to create one outreach service for vulnerable customers and for those living in remote areas.

Another key plan is to review opportunities to make efficient use of library buildings which could involve re-locating some to new, lower cost, more energy efficient sites, co-locating some with other services or organisations or changing the layout of some library buildings.

Other proposals include improving digital provision with access to other council services and the installation of self-service terminals in more of the smaller libraries to increase efficiency and accessibility, while inviting volunteers to support access to library services outside of regular hours by introducing a new way of managing community-supported libraries.

The council has already completed a staffing review, opened new libraries in Glossop and Belper, introduced two community-managed libraries at Tideswell and Woodville, relocated Killamarsh Library within a community leisure centre and previously achieved over £1.3m of savings.

Work on the proposed relocation of both Staveley and Clay Cross libraries to new and more efficient buildings is progressing after securing funding from the Government-funded Staveley and Clay Cross Town Deals.

The council is working on a wide range of many saving plans to manage an overall, forecast budget deficit of around £39m for the 2024/25 financial year.

It has blamed its struggles on reduced Government funding, higher than anticipated inflation, higher fuel, energy and material costs, the cost of living crisis, the Covid-19 pandemic, an increasing demand for services, and a continued unprecedented increase in demand for adults’ and children’s social care services.

Cllr Lewis added: “Our budgetary challenges are well-documented but we are doing all we can to ensure vital services, like our library service, continue to deliver for our residents and meet the differing needs of our communities.

“The library service consultation is one of many which are running or have been held this year and it is so important that our residents have their say and help us to shape the services they want and need for future years.”

The 12-week consultation runs until November 2 and those interested in taking part can visit the council link www.derbyshire.gov.uk/libraries-consultation for details.

Paper copies of the questionnaire have also been made available in Derbyshire’s libraries and through the mobile and home library services.