Edzell Library campaigners have taken their plea for a rethink over its closure direct to the heart of local decision-making.
A delegation from Edzell Library Action Group (ELAG) sought to convince councillors that the historic Inglis Hall setup could still fill a viable and vital role, but they were given little hope of a U-turn by Angus Alliance members who spoke of the “exciting” plans being developed to improve services to rural areas of the region.
Edzell was one of four part-time libraries axed as part of this year’s budget-setting exercise, with a mobile service set up in the affected communities.
ELAG delegates Heather Gow and Elaine Milne claimed it had proved a failure, with village user numbers down from 180 to just 40.
“The mobile library is missing the point. Books were only part of the library it was an important local meeting point and a great way of keeping the community together,” said the delegation representatives.
They said the historic nature of the 19th century Inglis Hall could be used to greater advantage and suggested Edzell might effectively become a satellite library of Brechin, staffed by workers from there.
However, with the blueprint for the future of mobile services hailed as the way forward by many members of the neighbourhood services committee they were addressing, the Edzell group’s dream of their library reopening looks increasingly like a fairytale.
In the next 10 days a month-long public consultation exercise will get under way to gauge opinion on the proposals drawn up by the authority, and rural residents across Angus have been urged to make their views known.
The new service concept is based around three mobile units of decreasing size from a large 14-tonne vehicle with IT suite and consultation area down to a small van which officials say will be able to reach the most remote or housebound customers.
Costing upwards of £300,000, the vehicles might also be used to offer other services.
“This is not just about delivering library provision. Over time this could become a mini ACCESS office to those who are incapacitated in their own home,” said Alliance councillor Peter Nield.
“It is something that people may take a little while to get used to, but I honestly believe this will be an enhanced provision over what we have now.”
Depute Alliance leader Ian Mackintosh said, “I am looking forward to seeing how this develops and looking at how additional services can be delivered postal services, banking, prescriptions and delivering messages. We are effectively turning the clock back 50 years.”
However, SNP member Sheena Welsh told the committee, “I am getting more and more uncomfortable with this the more we go through the details.
“We are going to have a super-duper vehicle which will probably service the communities closest to the burghs and then it gets less the further away they are.”
Photo byStanley Howe/Wikimedia Commons
