Last ditch attempt to save Swindon's libraries

West Country
Swindon
libraries
Wiltshire
Thursday 14 July 2016 at 10:31am

Campaigners will be protesting outside Swindon Borough Council later in a final bid to save some of Swindon's doomed libraries.

Senior councillors have agreed a proposal seeing Swindon's service drop from 15 libraries to just four.

The decision was made because of cuts to local Government funding. The council felt its priority should be looking after elderly and vulnerable people and it could make savings from the existing £2.6 million library budget.

The following libraries will remain open

Highworth
North Swindon
West Swindon
Central Library

The task of providing a library service will be up to volunteer groups, charities, community groups and local residents. A one-off grant of £500,000 will be made available to support groups who want to do just that.

Campaigners feel that the reason the decision to close the libraries was voted through last night (14 June) was because Cabinet members were given false hope that alternatives would work.

Campaigners for the threatened libraries, supported by the Save Swindon's Libraries campaign, will be demonstrating on the Council office steps from 6.15pm.

They will be gathering ahead of the meeting of Full Council, which is due to debate the future of Highworth Library.