Community trust to run 'valuable' town library

A trust has celebrated taking over the running of a town's library.

The facility in Raunds, Northamptonshire, was one of those threatened with closure by Northamptonshire County Council in 2018.

It was taken over by Raunds Community Library Trust and Creating Tomorrow College, but the college later pulled out.

The trust has now been able to take over the lease, with its chair Peter Wathen saying: "The library is a well-used and valuable asset to the town and surrounding villages."

The cash-strapped Northamptonshire County Council announced in 2018 that it was considering the closure of 21 libraries across the county.

A number of them were saved when they were transferred to community groups to be run by volunteers.

Raunds became a community library, temporarily renting premises from the former authority, but attempts to secure an agreement with the town council to take on the lease were not successful.

A partnership was then set up between the trust and the college but the education establishment later said the library "no longer fits with their strategic business model".

North Northamptonshire Council said the trust now had full control of the lease and "all building costs and any staffing/volunteers to deliver library services are the responsibility of the group running the library".

Mr Wathen said: "We are looking forward to increasing what we can offer to the community and working with local organisations and businesses to achieve this aim."

Greg Wilcox, the council's executive member for communities said: "It is great that the successful work by the Raunds Community Library Trust is continuing."

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