‘Prepare to share' say Warwickshire Libraries
With all but a few bankers feeling the pinch, everyone seems to be looking for ways to cut back on expenses, large and small.
Now Warwickshire Libraries are inviting local people to share their money-saving tips and ideas with others.
“It’s a small start but, we believe, an important one,” said Simon Robson, Head of Service, Communities and Wellbeing, for Warwickshire.
“If people send us their money-saving suggestions we can share them with the wider community, through the county’s 34 libraries and five mobiles. It might just help - and not just in terms of making economies.
"I think it could help people to really feel they are not alone in facing tough times.”Simon said each month’s top money-saving tips will be posted up in libraries countywide and on the Warwickshire website.
“Some people say this is the worst economic recession for a century or more,” said Simon. “Whether that’s true or not the economic downturn is certainly affecting most of us. It’s a shared experience so let’s share our recession-beating ideas and help each other out.”To get things started, Warwickshire Libraries have issued ten money-saving tips of their own:
1 Why buy what you can borrow? Up to 10 books for free from your local library. At average retail prices that’s over £100-worth to read at no cost.
2 Why not hire CDs to try before you buy, or rent DVDs instead of buying movies you might only watch once?
3 If you need to economise on magazine subscriptions, see if your library service has copies and read them for free.
4 Use library maps and travel guides, rather than buying them, to plan day-trips and holidays.
5 Check out price comparison sites on the internet in your local library. You could save money on big purchases or your energy bills.
6 You could learn a new language for free by borrowing library books and audio sets - ready for that holiday when the good times return.
7 Or research your family history without stretching the family finances. Members can access Ancestry.com on library computers.
8 Socialising can be expensive, but joining a reading group is a cost-free way of getting out and meeting people in your area.
9 If you have less to spend on going out, why not stay in with a good book? Drift away to exotic places or more exciting times and spend nothing.
10 As well as a whole world of books for young readers to borrow for free, most libraries offer low-cost events and activities to entertain youngsters.