Libraries shed paid staff as reliance on volunteers grows
Two in five library staff have lost their jobs over the past nine years, according to figures released today.
In libraries across the region there were 869 fewer staff last year than there were in 2010, with campaigners warning that the sector was now reliant on volunteers to come in and plug the gaps.
Over the period there was a 43 per cent fall paid library staff, while the number of volunteers has gone up to 2,327, a rise of 136 per cent.
The reduction in staff comes as the number of libraries has fallen by 19 per cent since austerity kicked in in 2010.
The House of Commons Library figures were released by the Labour Party for Volunteers Week, which highlights the work done by volunteers and their contribution to society.
Shadow Culture Secretary and West Bromwich East MP Tom Watson said: “Library volunteers are the last line of defence between central government cuts and losing library branches altogether.
“Volunteers are important to our public libraries, but so are professional staff with the expertise to support library users’ varied needs. Almost a decade of Tory austerity has caused professional library staff cuts across the country and volunteers are stepping into the gap.
“Our library volunteers are community heroes. This Tory Government should learn from their example, put an end to these senseless cuts, and invest in our communities again.”
Dozens of libraries have closed across the region in recent years, including nine in Walsall that went as part of a bid to ease the pressure on the council's dwindling finances.
Meanwhile many of those that have remained open suffering from declining usage figures.
According to data from the government’s Taking Part survey, fewer than one in three people in the West Midlands used a public library in 2018 – the lowest figure since modern records began.
The figure was down from 34.2 per cent in 2016/17, and has been declining for years.
