Community deal to make libraries safer

Conservatives took control at County Hall last week vowing to reverse the previous Labour administration’s library closure plans.

But leader Coun Geoff Driver has said he will not pull the rug from under the feet of community groups hoping to take control of their local premises.

Bids have been submitted for both Cleveleys and Thornton libraries with Lancashire County Council having agreed, in principle, a deal for the latter.

And Coun Andrea Kay, who backed both bids, believes community parterships could prove beneficial going forward.

She said: “I want the groups to get them. I want the volunteers in there alongside trained staff, in a partnership. With local groups involved it would be harder for somebody to take the libraries away from us in the future.”

Conservatives will discuss options for re-opening Lancashire libraries when they meet next week.