CAMPAIGN UPDATE! MEET OUTSIDE LAMBETH TOWN HALL, 6.30pm, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5 COUNCIL MEETING
Please join us at Lambeth Town Hall for the council Budget meeting on Wednesday 5 March that will rubber-stamp the decision to cut a massive chunk from the borough’s library budget. It starts at 7pm. We will meet them outside at 6.30pm!
It’s critical we let Cllr’s and decision-makers know that their cuts have consequences. Come along to say loudly and clearly – save our libraries!
The figures show that Lambeth’s library service has been starved of funding for decades. Incredibly, it receives almost the same in cash terms as it did 40 years ago yet is winning awards – most recently being awarded Library of Sanctuary status for its support to refugees and migrants. It is also a finalist in the British Book Awards Library of the Year.
However, the service now faces devastating 25% cuts. The budget has been flat for in 40 years, so they are working at the margins of their capacity. Further cuts will be beyond damaging. The staff work absolute wonders, but no-one can possibly succeed when faced with relentless long-term cuts.
We’ve been here before. In 1999 the library service was set to be slashed to a few ‘neighbourhood libraries’. In 2016 the ‘Culture 2020’ plan made broadly similar proposals. And today, around a quarter of the budget is set to be lost.
These reductions would decimate the service’s ability to do what it does best – serve our local communities. Our libraries are essential places where people access vital services, make new friendships, learn – or just enjoy a good book! The cuts are especially harmful as they will not help Lambeth’s overall budget position; the council spend £400m-£500m annually on goods and services meaning £1m simply will make no material difference. The Council’s £1bn debt was also built-up from poor decisions, for instance on the disastrous attempt to create a semi-private housebuilding firm, Homes for Lambeth.
Lambeth residents deserve better. Join us in saying loudly and clearly that we need and deserve a fully-funded library service – today!
Lambeth Libraries provide a vital, much-loved frontline service for our communities. Not only do they have computers – a necessity for everything from job applications to claiming benefits – but also a wealth of books, films, and music. They are also vital warm spaces for those who need them.
Yet the library service has been starved of funding for decades. Incredibly, it receives almost same in cash terms as it did 40 years ago, yet is winning awards – most recently being awarded Library of Sanctuary status for its support to refugees and migrants. It is also a finalist in the British Book Awards Library of the Year.
However they are threatened by 25% cuts. The budget has hardly risen in 40 years so they are working at the margins of their capacity. The staff work absolute wonders, but no-one can possibly succeed when faced with relentless long-term cuts.
These reductions would greatly hamper Lambeth Library’s ability to serve its local community – a place where people, myself included, have come to depend upon their services. Let’s take a stand against these cuts and protect Lambeth’s library service, our sanctuary, a source of enrichment and a bastion of community spirit.
Lambeth Libraries are more than just buildings—they are a sanctuary, a place of learning, and a lifeline for many. We must act now to stop these cuts and protect our libraries for generations to come.
