Warwickshire News Mine

Meetings
May 9, 7pm, Alcester/Bidford Community Forum, Crawford Memorial Hall, Salford Road, Bidford-on-Avon
May 12, 7pm, Stratford Community Forum,  Stratford Methodist Church, Old Town, Stratford-upon-Avon
May 12, 7.30pm, Harbury Parish Council, Village Hall, South Parade, Harbury
May 13, 7pm, Wellesbourne/Kineton Community Forum, Village Hall, Mill Street, Kineton
May 18, 7pm, Southam/Feldon Community Forum, Fire Station, Coventry Street, Southam
May 19, 7pm, Studley Community Forum, Village Hall, High Street , Studley
May 20, 7pm, Stour/Shipston Community Forum, Shipston High School, Darlingscote Road, Shipston-on-Stour
May 24, 7pm, Henley-in-Arden VA, C of E Primary School, Arden Road, Henley-in-Arden

Roadshow drop-in sessions

April 18, 3.30pm - 6.30pm, Kineton Library
April 27, 2pm - 5pm, Wellesbourne Library,
May 10, all day, Alcester Mobile Library
May 12, 10am - 1pm, Studley Library
May 13, all day, Southam Mobile Library
May 14, 9.30am - 12.30pm, Henley-in-Arden Library
May 19, 10am - 1pm, Harbury Library
May 24, 11.30am - 2.30pm, Stratford Library
May 27, 3.30pm - 6.30pm, Bidford Library
May 28, 9.30am - 12.30pm, Shipston Library

Warwickshire County Council launched a 12-week public consultation on March 18 to find out what people think of the proposals for radical change to the county’s library services.

Sixteen Warwickshire libraries have been identified as no longer sustainable in ther current form, alongside other cost-cutting measures including reduced opening hours, reductions in the workforce and mobile library fleet, and cutting the number of public computers across the library network.

The Library and Information Service must cut spending by £2 million over the next three years as part of Warwickshire County Council’s plans to achieve required savings of £66 million across all services.

Councillor Colin Hayfield, Portfolio-holder for Customers, Workforce and Partnerships, said: “Savings on this scale mean some very tough decisions, and won’t be pain-free. That’s why it is so important for local people to take part in the consultation, and have their say.”

As the library consultation enters its fourth week, 500 questionnaires have already been completed, around half of them online. Consultation roadshows and sessions at public meetings, explaining the proposed changes, have been well-attended.  More information, including the consultation questionnaire, is available in all Warwickshire libraries and online at: warwickshire.gov.uk/facingthechallenge.

A ‘blog’ provides news and updates (libraryconsult.wordpress.com) or you can follow the consultation on Twitter (twitter.com/warksdirect).

Link to WCC