MP Wants Rottingdean Library To Remain Open

Campaigners have won backing from their MP as they look to find a way to keep their village library open.

Rottingdean Library is one of three community libraries threatened with closure as part of budget cuts aimed at saving Brighton and Hove City Council £250,000 over two years from its £3.7 million a year libraries budget.

Villagers have rallied to find a way to keep Rottingdean Library open – not least as the sixth most popular in Brighton and Hove, according to the council’s Library Sustainability Plan.

The plan compared 13 libraries in Brighton and Hove and said that almost 29,000 people visited Rottingdean.

Half of them used the Libraries Extra service, when the library is unstaffed. The building is staffed on only two days a week.

The Labour MP for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven, Chris Ward, joined Rottingdean author Elly Griffiths to meet campaigners who set up a petition which had attracted almost 3,500 signatures at the time of writing.

Mr Ward said:

“Libraries play a vital role in our communities – especially for local schools and nurseries – helping people of all ages get immersed in books and learning.

“I want to keep Rottingdean Library open and have been working closely with Brighton and Hove City Council, the Save Rottingdean Library campaign, the parish council and the Rottingdean Heritage Society – all of whom I’ve spoken to in recent weeks – to find a way forward.

“Communities need libraries and Rottingdean is no exception. The strength of feeling locally is crystal clear.”

Campaigner Sarah Craven-Antill hopes that a solution could be found after what was described as a productive discussion – and there’s been some encouraging momentum.

She was thrilled to see Rottingdean Parish Council’s August meeting packed with people who wanted to support the library.

A teacher from St Margaret’s Church of England Primary School spoke at the meeting about how she took her children and now takes her pupils to the library to encourage them to sign up.

Mrs Craven-Antill said:

“It’s so important – and the idea of sending them (the children) to Saltdean is just not going to happen. It’s one of the things those children who aren’t signed up are going to lose out on.

“What we’re concerned about in the village is there’s two primary schools and two nurseries – one of the nurseries goes to the library weekly. This is part of their activities. They can’t be crossing the A259 twice to get to Saltdean.

“We’re really concerned the true impact of this proposed closure has not been fully explored.”

A report to the council’s cabinet last month said that Rottingdean Library was within two miles of Saltdean Library, had good transport links and many people used both libraries.

The campaigners want the library to stay open because, Mrs Craven-Antill said, it would be a struggle to create a volunteer-run community library. Many who might volunteer were already committed to other projects in the village.

But there could be enough volunteers to manage a few shifts two days a week.

The area was described as having “less evidence of deprivation” and reducing the number of libraries from two to one would achieve savings with “minimal impact” on residents, the report said.

More than 500 people have responded to the Library Sustainability Plan consultation on the council’s website.

The consultation also has questions about the proposed closure of two other libraries – Hollingbury Library, at the Old Boat Corner Community Centre, and Westdene Library, in Bankside.

The consultation is open until Friday 10 October. Paper copies are available from family hubs, libraries, Hove Town Hall reception and the Homelessness Helpdesk at Bartholomew’s House, in Brighton.