Controversial plans to transfer three South Derbyshire libraries to community groups to save £1.6 million have been described as “devastating” by a council's Labour leader.

The Conservative-run Derbyshire County Council is set to launch a consultation into the future of its 45 libraries – including Woodville, Melbourne and Etwall.

The preferred choice, put forward by council officers, is to retain 25 libraries under direct county council control, and pass the 20 others over to community groups, saving £1.6 million.

The libraries earmarked for potential transfer include Woodville, the most underused in the county.

Staff would still be paid by the council but management of the premises would be undertaken by the community. The council would still have a say on opening hours and staffing levels - but officials say these would have to be “reviewed” to save money.

The library cuts come after the council agreed to shave a further £12 million in total from services this year, to meet an overall funding reduction of £53 million by 2021.

The county’s two remaining mobile library vans would also be passed over to community groups, saving £200,000.

The 20 libraries which could be passed off to community groups were chosen based on needs in the local area and the average number of books issued, visits by users to the library, and transport links to each site.

A consultation on the plans would start in May and last for 12 weeks, if the project is approved by councillors on Thursday, April 5.

Woodville Library is one of the services earmarked for potential transfer

The results would be put forward by the end of the year.

Councillor Anne Western, leader of the Labour party on the county council, said: “In 2013 the Tories said that if Labour ran the council all the libraries were at risk.

“In four years we didn't close a single one. Not one.

“(Barry) Lewis (Conservative leader of the county council) is trying to take credit for that and for the new ones we built and approved.

“Trying to brand this as bold and innovative won't wash.

“It's time for you Councillor Barry Lewis to show courage and leadership and tell your government that austerity isn't working and that we want a professionally-run library service.”

The other three consultation options include the county council retaining all its libraries, which is not considered “viable”; closing several libraries - rejected due to the “potential challenge” from members of the public; or to outsource the service entirely to another organisation, which could include another local authority.

The council says it would continue giving support to the 20 libraries earmarked for transfer to community groups.

This would include:

  • Ongoing professional support
  • Free library stock and the ability to manage it
  • Free computers for public use
  • The transfer of Derbyshire County Council-owned buildings on a peppercorn rent (subject to a service level agreement)
  • A grant for each of the first four years of the transfer to community management - total funding over four years of £481,900
  • A grant for each of the first four years towards a different approach to mobile library provision - total funding over four years of £144,800.

Tory Councillor Barry Lewis, leader of the county council, said: "Like every council, we're facing significant pressures on our budget and must look to do things differently, which is why we're working to be an enterprising council, making bold decisions and big changes.

"We acknowledge the value and importance of our library service but this does not make it immune from the challenges we're facing.

"We don't intend closing any libraries and are confident our new draft plan reflects our commitment to the service and will secure its future.

"We need to know what Derbyshire residents think of this draft plan and will be encouraging them to help shape the future of the service if the consultation is agreed.

“In Derbyshire, unlike some other authorities, no static libraries have closed in recent years and a reflection of our commitment to the service is that new replacement libraries have been built in South Normanton, Heanor and Ashbourne, another is due to open shortly in Glossop and a new replacement library is planned for Belper."

The council also plans to reduce funding to buy more books and DVDs by £140,000, nearly 20 per cent of its total spend for 2017 to 2018 of £739,818.

Council officers have listed the following 20 libraries for potential transfer to community groups;

Borrowash; Brimington; Clowne; Creswell; Duffield; Etwall; Gamesley; Hadfield; Hayfield; Holmewood; Killamarsh; Melbourne; Old Whittington; Pinxton; Somercotes; Tideswell; Whaley Bridge; Whitwell; Wingerworth and Woodville.

Woodville is the least-used library in the county, with 2,360 visits in 2016 to 2017 – a third of the second least-used, Somercotes with 6,615.

This is dwarfed by Chesterfield which had 622,210 visits.

The differing numbers of visits is reflected in the amount of money it costs the council to fund each library per year, with £11,573 for Woodville and £23,462 for Somercotes, compared to £733,865 for Chesterfield.

The county council also intends to move more of its libraries to “self-service” under a “smart libraries” scheme.

The Schools Library Service loans books and educational equipment and resources to Derbyshire schools
Three libraries in South Derbyshire could be taken over by community groups

Officers say that this would “not necessarily” result in the total removal of staff, who would need to remain present for a number of hours each week – but a “certain percentage” of these hours would be totally unstaffed.

The smart library approach allows users to enter locked buildings using their membership card and a code, to borrow books and log on to the internet without staff being present.

CCTV would be installed or improved to help monitor the service.

Around £400,000 of the proposed £1.6 million savings would come from reducing library opening hours and £360,000 would be saved by “reviewing” staff.

The number of staff at risk has not yet been specified.

The proposed range of opening-hour reductions is as high as 16 hours from Staveley, 14 from Borrowash and 13 at Shirebrook.

Council officers say that usage of libraries has declined in the past five years with visits down 21 per cent and the number of books being issued falling by 33 per cent.

In 2016 to 2017, 2.2 million visits were made to libraries in Derbyshire, with 14,482 to the two remaining mobile units – a colossal drop from 211,465 in 2012 when the service had 10 vehicles.

Eight of these were axed in 2014.

The current mobile library vans stop at towns across the county from around 20 minutes at a time each month; however, some locations such as Pilsley Community Centre have the service for several hours.

Overall in 2016 to 2017, 2.6 million books were issued.