Crewe councillors urge MP to lobby for funding to stop town's library services being cut
Two Crewe councillors have called on local MP, Dr Kieran Mullan, to lobby the chancellor for funding - aiming to stop the town's library services being slashed.
Cheshire East Council faces a £20m funding gap because of soaring inflation and the increasing pressure on services.
Among the cost-cutting measures included in the budget to fill that gap, was a proposal to revise the library service provision to save £1,056,000 over the next four years. That is being consulted on now.
For Crewe, this means the library, based at the Lifestyle Centre, Forge Street, would close for a day and a half each week.
Labour councillors Laura Smith and Anthony Critchley have written to Dr Mullan MP (Conservative), urging him to lobby the government for extra funding.
Cllr Smith (Crewe South) said: "Austerity measures enforced by Conservative governments over the last decade have resulted in real terms cuts amounting to more than 20 per cent for council budgets.
"Until central government deals with the financial impact of the increased cost of social care, the everyday services we all value will continue to suffer as councils have to respond to a huge combination of pressures.
"This isn't an inevitability – if the government wished to invest in community, then it could, and that investment would then positively impact our local economy."
She said a group of 10 Crewe Labour councillors had written to Cheshire East's chief executive in March outlining their concerns about the impact on library services.
"Ultimately, we want a situation whereby services are retained, and our highly experienced and trained staff are recompensed well for the vital role that they do," said Cllr Smith.
Cllr Critchley (Crewe Central), who visited the library this week, said it was staggering just how many services it provides.
"At 10:30am on a Monday morning, there were two people sat reading, a private tutoring lesson going on with two children.
"Staff mentioned this is often the case for kids expelled from school, five people using the internet on the computers, two women sat in the history section researching, four people sat at the tables upstairs working on their laptops.
"While all of this was going on, 'Old McDonald' and 'heads, shoulders, knees, and toes' were ringing out from the 'Monday Funday' session downstairs – one of three pre-school activity groups that are attended by 15/20 toddlers and under-fives.
"Staff spoke of the residents who look forward to the Thursday games club – last week attended by 25 people, mostly older and susceptible to social isolation," he said.
Cllr Critchley added the library has a jobs club and recently, because of funding cuts to the citizen's advice bureau, library staff often become increasingly involved in issues previously dealt with by the CAB.
"Libraries are a safe place; over the winter they were a warm place," said the Crewe Central councillor, listing numerous other services they provide.
"Now is the time to invest in their services, not to shrink them. But that depends on the Conservative government investing in them."
Cheshire East is currently holding a further consultation on the proposals and is seeking feedback from the public on how income might be generated to help keep these libraries open for longer.
It is also seeking information how library provision should be delivered in local areas, and what the new opening hours for each Cheshire East library should look like.
Cllr Critchley added: "Please respond to the consultation and write to the MP urging that he lobbies his government."
The consultation, which closes on Sunday 9 July, can be here found HERE.
READ MORE: Man arrested after 'breaking into sheds' on 'suspected stolen' pushbike in Crewe.
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