The Friends of Mile Oak Library failed in an 11th-hour bid to save the venue from closing.
Funding for the library was cut when Brighton and Hove City Council set its budget earlier this year to save £35,000 – and this led to its closure on Friday (21 July).
Campaigner Victoria Smith made a last-ditch attempt to persuade councillors to change their minds at a meeting of the full council on Thursday (20 July).
She appealed for a last-minute reprieve for the venue which is in the grounds of the Portslade Aldridge Community Academy (PACA), in Chalky Road.
Ms Smith said: “Mile Oak Library’s opening hours and activities have been very restricted due to its position in PACA and dual function as the school’s library during the school day.
“This curtails the extent that early years providers and primary and special schools can engage with the community library.
“The library cannot operate the Libraries Extra scheme or easily provide inexpensive sessions which open up the library to new users and increase footfall.
“Additionally, the library’s current position inside PACA removes obvious external frontage, making it very difficult to find and hiding it from any new members of the community who don’t know that Mile Oak has its own library.
“Poor signage and a lack of a noticeboard letting passers-by know of library events and news exacerbate this.”
She said that during the covid-19 restrictions, a lengthy closure, erratic opening times and a policy of keeping the lights off until the first visitor arrived had given people the impression the library was already closed, resulting in a “dramatic drop” in use after the 18-month closure.
The library was the only free community space open to the public and the only designated warm hub in the area, Ms Smith said, and the loss would adversely affect the most vulnerable in the community.
She said: “This decision will impact disproportionately on women, children, those with mobility issues and the elderly – and those on already overstretched incomes.
“Mile Oak has low second car ownership and there are no direct bus services to the two nearest libraries.
“Plus, bus fares will add financial barriers to a formally free service and children who currently have free access to books will no longer have this educational advantage and enrichment.”
Labour councillor Leslie Pumm, who chairs the council’s Equalities, Community Safety and Human Rights Committee, said that closing libraries was difficult but the council had to make “tough choices”.
Councillor Pumm said that he was meeting North Portslade councillors to find a new “warm hub” for winter in the area to support people during the “cost of living crisis”.
He said: “There are no viable suggestions for making the savings without closing the library. While I understand this is disappointing, I will now focus on saving the remaining infrastructure of libraries.”
Councillor Pumm said that most current customers already used other libraries, with Hangleton and Portslade libraries within two miles of Mile Oak and open seven days a week using Libraries Extra.
The library service also had an increasing digital offer, with digital books, audiobooks, magazines and newspapers all available online.
He added that the council was also looking at ways to create a home delivery service and locate a small collection in a publicly accessible building.
Libraries are more than just Libraries now.
They’re integral to communities such as helping mums and have internet service for people that have no Internet access.
So come on B & H Council. Show a bit of compassion for once and stop picking on the easiest of targets for saving money!!
The perhaps we need a properly staffed separate community centre for Mile Oak rather than just a library squeezed into a school?
However I can’t see £35,000 per year covering the costs.
I agree with Peter that a community centre would be great. They don’t require a lot to run, if you’re a Trusteeship of volunteers.
As a retired public librarian and former resident of the Mile Oak area ( and a Labour Party member), I am very disappointed to hear of this closure!
£35 k is just pocket money!
But £13.5m for a seafront e-bike hire scheme of limited zoneage that few people can afford to ride at nearly £10 per hour is a fine use of public money. Pull the plug on Beryl bikes if you need to save money Council, not Libraries and people’s mental and educational health.
I note that cllr Punn said “There are no viable suggestions for making the savings without closing the library. While I understand this is disappointing, I will now focus on saving the remaining infrastructure of libraries.”
This is not correct as I, as a councillor in North Portslade, identified alternative source of funding which was agreed as s viable workable budget amendment by the senior finance officer.
See all media coverage at that time and the webcast of that budget meeting
As for finding another “warm space” this was explored extensively at that time