City sees borrowing collapse in volunteer libraries

THE NUMBER of books being borrowed from Sheffield libraries has fallen sharply since the sites were turned over to volunteers by the council in a cost-cutting measure.

Figures revealed book lending at the city’s 16 volunteer-run libraries has dropped by more than 50 per cent in total – with one library seeing loans plummet from more than 10,000 per year to just a couple of hundred.

The council stressed the figures do not capture all book loans and pointed out there has been a decline in library visits nationally. But campaigners claimed this was evidence the council’s policy to hand over control of some libraries to volunteers has failed.

And they raised concerns some volunteer-run libraries could close unless the council takes them back under its control.

A librarian who works for a private company said she has many colleagues within the city’s libraries who have concern about their future. She said: “Opening hours are reduced, there is less staff and budgets for new books that people want are being reduced.

“When you factor all that in, it is a death by a thousands cuts rather than one. They are essentially marching them towards a slow closure.”

Sixteen of the city’s 28 libraries are now run by volunteers after the council approved plans in 2014 to relinquish control in a cost-cutting move aimed at saving £650,000 a year. At the time the council agreed grants of up to £262,000 a year for ‘associate libraries’ – run and maintained by volunteers – and 15 hours of support from council staff per week for ‘co-delivered’ libraries.

Figures show 497,934 books were borrowed from the 16 libraries while they were still council-run in the financial year 2013/14. But since they were taken over by volunteers that figure has dropped to 213,469 for the financial year 2017/18.

But Sheffield Council stressed the figures do not represent the whole picture. The statistics only show books borrowed in council stock and some of the libraries operate their own lending service which are not included in the figures. The authority also rejected calls for volunteer-run libraries to be taken back under authority control.