440 library staff jobs cut in East since 2016, figures show, amid warnings of 'funding crisis'
Woodston Library in Peterborough is on a list of buildings the city council has said it could sell to help balance its budget, as Stuart Leithes reports.
Libraries across the East of England have cut hundreds of staff over seven years, new figures reveal - and there are fears of further reductions as campaigners warn of a "crisis" facing the service.
Across the region, there were 443 fewer staff in 2023, compared to 2016.
More than half of these losses were in Essex, where there were 248 fewer library staff. Hertfordshire lost 92 jobs.
There are fewer libraries too - 324 in total last year, 10 fewer than in 2016, according to figures from the BBC Shared Data Unit. Northamptonshire lost the most libraries: 16 over the seven years.
The majority of libraries are run by councils - although there is a trend of some turning into community-run ventures, often supported by the council, but at times run by volunteers.
There were four community-run libraries in 2016 in the East. Seven years later, there were 24.
Woodston Library in Peterborough is on a list of buildings the city council has said it could sell to help balance its budget.
Jennie Storey is part of a group called Friends of Woodston Library, which has been formed to try to protect the community hub.
She said: "We're not happy. We appreciate they have a debt which they need to fill. But the way of doing that is not by by selling off vital community services.
"People are suffering from social isolation. They don't have money to buy books. It's a struggle to put food on the table."
A Peterborough City Council spokesman said the library formed "part of our wider locality asset review which is currently ongoing", adding it was hopeful that a decision would be made "shortly".
Isobel Hunter, chief executive of Libraries Connected, an organisation of public libraries, said: “These figures lay bare the scale of the crisis facing public libraries.
"But as this data shows, it is not just outright closures that threaten the library network – it is also a gradual reduction in opening hours, staff numbers and operating budgets that can leave libraries unable to meet the needs of their communities."
She called for ministers to "urgently fix local government finances".
Louis Coiffait-Gunn, chief executive of the library and information association CILIP, said: “I think often when people think about libraries, they have a slightly old-fashioned view...
"Actually, a lot of the digital skills and the digital services that libraries provide, they’re what’s gonna make the difference in the knowledge economy."
He continued: “Encourage people when they think of libraries and librarians to take a look at what happens now, not what they remember from when they were young perhaps.
"The staff in libraries help with a huge range of things and they really are helping with start-ups, they’re helping with kids learning to code, they’re helping with their health, with their wellbeing, they provide a huge range of services, over and above just books.”
A government spokesperson said: “Public libraries play an important role in communities by providing spaces for people from all walks of life to access books, work and learn.
“We recognise the pressures they face, and are committed to giving stability back to local councils so services such as these can best meet the needs of their communities.
"Any significant change to library services, including closures or other reductions, must be communicated and consulted on locally by the council."
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