LIBRARY opening hours in Barrow and South Lakeland are set to undergo their biggest shake-up in years after proposed cuts were rubber-stamped.

Barrow Library will shut on Sundays and Walney Library will close 30 minutes early on four days, under the new arrangements.

Meanwhile, times at Roose Library will see an overall net gain.

Members of Cumbria County Council Local Committee for Barrow made the decision to change opening hours following a consultation, which attracted just 235 responses, earlier in the year.


Barrow Library. A local committee for Barrow report statement said: "Library opening hours had not been reviewed in Barrow for a number of years, and it was felt as part of area planning to be an opportune time to look at them."

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In South Lakeland, opening time reductions have been granted for the first time in 10 years, with Ulverston, Ambleside, Grange, Windermere, Kendal and Milnthorpe all affected.

Across the authority, opening will reduce by 15 per cent from 258 hours to 219 hours.

Ulverston Library will have a half-day Wednesday, Grange Library will be shut every weekday lunchtime between noon to 1pm and Windermere Library will close early on Monday.

The report to the South Lakeland Local Committee said: "We talked to 303 people and 624 completed questionnaires were returned.

"The responses showed that 65 per cent of respondents accepted the proposed changes to opening hours, 23 per cent of respondents rejected the proposals while 12 per cent respondents selected 'no opinion'."

The changes will not lead to any staff redundancies.
Ulverston Library.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE: Proposals to slash library opening times in Barrow and South Lakeland

Earlier this month, the Evening Mail revealed that Cumbria County Council had spent £617,828.30 on 64 voluntary redundancies and one compulsory redundancy in the library service between April 1 2013 and March 31 2016.

The changes will be phased in locally from the week starting Monday August 1, and the decisions taken will be reviewed after 12 months.

Posters have gone up in libraries explaining the new times.

Changing times

Nationally, library usage has fallen over recent years, with a shift in their purpose changing from simply borrowing books to being community hubs and places to access online services.

Government spending cuts has seen councils across the country slash their library provision, prioritising other cores services like health and social care.

Library changes in Evening Mail circulation area

BARROW

CURRENT

NEW

MONDAY

9.30am-7pm

9.30am-6pm

TUESDAY

9.30am-5pm

9.30am-6pm

WEDNESDAY

9.30am-7pm

9.30am-6pm

THURSDAY

9.30am-5pm

9.30am-6pm

FRIDAY

9.30am-5pm

SAME

SATURDAY

10am-4pm

SAME

SUNDAY

12pm-4pm

CLOSED


WALNEY

CURRENT

NEW

MONDAY

10am-1pm, 2pm-6pm

10am-1am, 2pm-5.30pm

TUESDAY

10am-1pm, 2pm-6pm

10am-1am, 2pm-5.30pm

WEDNESDAY

10am-1pm, 2pm-6pm

10am-1am, 2pm-5.30pm

THURSDAY

CLOSED

SAME

FRIDAY

10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm

SAME

SATURDAY

9.30am-1pm

10am-1pm


ROOSE

CURRENT

NEW

MONDAY

9.30am-1pm, 2pm-5.30pm

10am-1pm, 2pm-5.30pm

TUESDAY

9.30am-1pm, 2pm-5.30pm

10am-1pm, 2pm-5.30pm

WEDNESDAY

CLOSED

10am-1pm

THURSDAY

9.30am-1pm, 2pm-5.30pm

10am-1pm, 2pm-5.30pm

FRIDAY

9.30am-1pm, 2pm-5.30pm

10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm

SATURDAY

9.30am-12pm

10am-1pm

ULVERSTON

CURRENT

NEW

MONDAY

9am-6pm

9am-5pm

TUESDAY

9am-5pm

SAME

WEDNESDAY

9am-5pm

9am-1pm

THURSDAY

9am-5pm

9am-6pm

FRIDAY

9am-5pm

SAME

SATURDAY

9.30am-1pm

SAME

GRANGE

CURRENT

NEW

MON

9.30am-5pm

10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm

TUES

9.30am-5pm

10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm

WED

9.30am-5pm

10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm

THURS

9.30am-5pm

10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm

FRI

9.30am-5pm

10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm

SAT

9.30am-1pm

10am-1pm

WINDERMERE

CURRENT

NEW

MONDAY

9.30am-5pm

9.30am-1pm

TUESDAY

9.30am-5pm

SAME

WEDNESDAY

CLOSED

SAME

THURSDAY

9.30am-5pm

SAME

FRIDAY

9.30am-5pm

SAME

SATURDAY

10am-1pm

SAME

AMBLESIDE

CURRENT HOURS

NEW HOURS

MONDAY

10am-5pm

10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm

TUESDAY

1pm-7pm

1pm-6pm

WEDNESDAY

10am-5pm

10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm

THURSDAY

CLOSED

SAME

FRIDAY

10am-5pm

10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm

SATURDAY

10am-1pm

SAME

KENDAL

CURRENT

NEW

MONDAY

9.30am-7pm

9.30am-5pm

TUESDAY

9.30am-5pm

SAME

WEDNESDAY

9.30am-7pm

SAME

THURSDAY

9.30am-5pm

9.30am-1pm

FRIDAY

9.30am-5pm

SAME

SATURDAY

9.30am-3.30pm

9.30am-4pm

SUNDAY

12pm-4pm

CLOSED

MILNTHORPE

CURRENT

NEW

MONDAY

10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm, 5.30pm-7pm

2pm-6pm

TUES

10am-1pm

CLOSED

WED

10am-1pm, 2pm-6pm

2pm-6pm

THURSDAY

CLOSED

SAME

FRIDAY

10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm

SAME

SATURDAY

10am-12.30pm

SAME