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Library in “Town of Books” Hay-on-Wye Under Threat

By October 20, 2016Libraries, News

We’ve heard a lot about government cuts and library closures in the UK in recent months and it seems that nothing is sacred as it’s announced that Hay-on-Wye Public Library is the latest under threat!

Hay-on-Wye is Britain’s most famous book town and the Hay Festival is famous worldwide, but it seems even a town that brings in thousands of bibliophiles a year, can’t save its library.

Powys Council have said that its county-wide service is being reviewed as it tries to save money after government cuts, but surely cutting the public library in a town that relies on literature to survive is morally reprehensible! The town mayor has said that residents have been asked to raise £18,000 a year to keep it open, or the town may lose its public library forever.

If funding for Hay-on-Wye Public Library cannot be found before the end of October then a consultation on closures will begin, despite the Hay Festival recognising and supporting the library.

Branch closures are never good, and it’s never great to lose your local library, but to hear that Hay-on-Wye library is under threat, really does show the scale of the problem. Maybe the Brexiteers, could give us some of the £350m they promised would be saved for the NHS if we left Europe, the £29.8m that Powys Council have to save by 2019 seems small fry in comparison.

A consultation on the library received a massive turnout and it seems any closure will be strongly opposed by residents of the book loving town.



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