I WAS appalled to learn recently that some activities which were free of charge at Warwick library are now to incur charges.
It appears that coffee mornings and family history sessions will now cost £2.50 and the bounce and rhyme, for children under two, £1 per child.
I recall the financial limitations of being a mum with a small child myself but I was still able to enj
oy the free resources of our local library. I am also strongly opposed to any discrimination against the elderly, who frequent the coffee and family history activities, and parents and toddlers.
Since the elderly and young families figure prominently within those areas of deprivation in Warwick west ward and throughout the county, I am particularly concerned that already disadvantaged people in our communities will be discouraged or prevented from attending libraries, which are intended as a focal point for community information resources.
I also consider it scandalous that these charges appear to be decided by an apparently autonomous organisation, Warwickshire County Council events management group, with no reference to councillors. How is it possible that this group is able to make these arbitrary decisions in such a cavalier manner?
The county council portfolio holder who oversees libraries did not appear to have any knowledge of this when I contacted him and, from what little information I have been able to glean, councillors at county, district and town level have not even been consulted, let alone agreed to this hike in charges.
I find this amazing in view of the increasing emphasis on strategies to improve literacy these days.
Last year, a working group chaired by Sir Claus Moser, chairman of the basic skills agency, published a report on the standards of adult basic skills and found that adults in England have poorer literacy and numeracy skills than those in any other European country apart from Poland and Ireland and that one in five would be unable to find a plumber in the Yellow Pages telephone directory.
The report says the consequences of this are "devastating for society, for the economy and above all for the individuals concerned". It also criticises "the patchy, almost random" provision of help for those who need it and called for a "national crusade" to tackle the problem.
So what are our county councillors going to do to help? - Coun Linda Bromley, Mercia Way, Warwick.
* Similar changes have been introduced at other libraries across the county. Editor
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