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December 18, 2006
Upper Norwood joint library
Among afficionados the Upper Norwood "Joint" Library is a special item. It is a library which belongs to no one London Borough and has an independent management board. It is alone and very good for being so-- rather better than many of its neighbours.
However it is funded by money from both Croydon and Lambeth, on whose boundaries it lies-- in the past few years these two boroughs have invested in much improvement work on the building.
Word reaches me this morning that it is threatened with closure by "reduction of funding by Croydon". If this is true it is the first of the new year closures that will come with the budget round. Like in a general election when there is a dramatic swing from one party to another, this library was not on any list of possible closures. One has to be surprised - no doubt there will be a vigorous campaign, but it demonstrates the danger of "independence"
Posted by Perkins at December 18, 2006 2:12 PM
Comments
Please follow - and join - the vigorous campaign on http://www.unlc.org.uk.
Having our own joint management committee, formed of Croydon and Lambeth councillors and local people, means that we can get more involved in the running of the library. It does leave us vulnerable - but it also builds a ready-made resistance movement when we are ill-treated. We have discussed going over to being wholly funded by one or other of the boroughs, but that doesn't guarantee they won't close us. The unique model we have works beautifully and economically. It just needs decent funding.
Posted by: Joe Figueira at December 20, 2006 11:12 PM