Consultation On Future Of Fife Libraries

The future of Fife's library service is up for discussion for the next 2 weeks in a series of consultations across the Kingdom.

Fife Council wants to hear your thoughts on the shake-up, which involves the potential closure of 16 libraries. Opening hours will be reviewed and mobile libraries rerouted. The main change the Trust is proposing, in order to deliver the financial savings required by Fife Council, is to move to a new way of working for libraries. They say this proposal would respond to the changing needs of local communities and make library services fit for the future.

Laurie Piper, Head of External Relations for Fife Cultural Trust said: "Library services represent the largest element of the Trust’s service provision. We invest over two thirds of the management fee we receive from Fife Council into running libraries, with all library services delivered free of charge to Fife’s communities.

"Our proposals have been developed as a result of a Trust-wide review of all the services we provide. They are based on a number of factors, including the state of the building, access to alternative libraries and also how customers have actually used the library over the last seven years. We are committed to ensuring the long-term sustainability of Fife’s library service despite the financial challenges we are facing, and to create a modern, responsive library service that is accessible for customers across Fife."