Southampton City Council has been admonished by a friends group for “glacially slow” progress on restoring library services to a local branch. Library picture
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In a frank letter sent to the council, copied in to relevant cabinet members and ward councillors, the Friends of Cobbett Road Library have once again highlighted the snail-like tendering process for an operator to come forward to run the branch.
The council turned Cobbett Road into a ‘community-run library’, along with four others, in 2016 when it withdrew funding.
As reported, Social Care in Action successfully tendered to run it, but had to pull out in early 2021 - unsurprisingly blaming the pandemic given the charity’s room-renting model.
And it’s been shut as a library ever since, despite two calls from the council for bidders to take it on.
The adult library - snapped when it was still open to the public
Said the Friends of Cobbett Road Library in their letter: “We have been told, repeatedly, that something will happen in a week, a month. That once someone is back from holiday something will happen. That discussions on clarifications are imminent. Yet actual progress has been glacially slow – which perhaps is the reason why at least one bidder has dropped out.”
“No information has yet been provided about the history, purpose, community involvement or business plans of any bidder. This does not inspire confidence that any eventual lease will be of real benefit to the building, to the community and to the Library Service,” they continued.
The group also suggested they feel largely sidelined from the process, and concluded their letter saying: “It will not be long before many in our community will have a very real need for “warm spaces”. In 2022 hopes were expressed that Cobbett Road Library might be operational enough to provide this service in the winter of 2022/3. Currently, providing any such benefit before 2024/5 seems unlikely. That is just one of a great many ways in which the Council is failing to make use of this important community asset. We think there has been more than enough time for talking, and that action is long overdue.”
The Friends of Cobbett Road Library are intending to make a ‘presentment’ to further raise the issue at an ancient city tribunal known as ‘Court Leet’ which is held annually - this year on Tuesday (Oct 3).
Southampton City Council was invited to comment.
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