LIBRARY opening hours are being slashed across the borough as part of Dudley Council’s cost saving measures.
From August 1, more than 100 hours will be lost each week at the 14 libraries and archive centre combined, which the local authority claim is due to “meeting the demands of budget cuts from central government”.
Four of the borough’s main libraries – Brierley Hill, Dudley, Halesowen, and Stourbridge – will each see their opening times reduced by 11.5 hours a week, while Sedgley Library will be closed for an extra 22.5 hours.
Opening hours will also be drastically cut at the borough’s Archive and Local History Centre, as well as the libraries in Coseley, Cradley, Gornal, Kingswinford, Long Lane, Lye, Netherton and Wordsley.
Dudley Council said the move comes after a three month consultation which the authority carried out with service users.
However, a council spokeswoman reiterated that all of the libraries will be open for at least six days a week, with Dudley and Stourbridge’s venues staying open every day and evening opening times will continue “where there is public demand”.
Councillor Rachel Harris, cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said: “The decision to reduce our opening times reflects a need to reduce budgets across the council in a time of huge cuts to local government funding.
“The good news is that no libraries are closing. Instead we have reduced the opening hours but only after listening to feedback from customers and looking closely at usage data which highlighted when people were actually using the libraries.”
The new opening times for the borough’s libraries and archive centre are as follows:
Archive and Local History Centre
Monday: Closed
Tuesday: 9.30am to 5pm
Wednesday: 10.30am to 4pm
Thursday: 10.30pm to 4pm
Friday: 10.30pm to 4pm
Saturday: 10am to 4.30pm
Sunday: Closed
Brierley Hill Library
Monday: 9.30am to 6pm
Tuesday: 9am to 6pm
Wednesday: 9am to 5pm
Thursday: 9am to 6pm
Friday: 9am to 6pm
Saturday: 9.30am to 4pm
Sunday: Closed
Coseley Library
Monday: 10am - 6pm
Tuesday: 10am - 4pm
Wednesday: 10am - 4pm
Thursday: 9am - 5pm
Friday: 9am - 4.30pm
Saturday: 9.30am - 1pm
Sunday: Closed
Cradley Library
Monday: 10am to 1pm / 2pm to 6pm
Tuesday: 10am to 1pm / 2pm to 5.30pm
Wednesday: 10am to 1pm / 2pm to 5.30pm
Thursday: 10am to 1pm / 2pm to 5.30pm
Friday: 9am to 1pm / 2pm to 5.30pm
Saturday: 10am to 2pm
Sunday: Closed
Dudley Library
Monday: 9.30am - 6pm
Tuesday: 9.30am - 6pm
Wednesday: 9.30am - 6pm
Thursday: 9.30am - 5pm
Friday: 9.30am - 5pm
Saturday: 10am - 4pm
Sunday: 10am - 1.30pm
Gornal Library
Monday: 9.30am - 1pm / 2pm - 5pm
Tuesday: 9.30am - 1pm / 2pm - 6pm
Wednesday: 9.30am - 1pm / 2pm - 5pm
Thursday: 9.30am - 1pm / 2pm - 5pm
Friday: 9.30am - 1pm / 2pm - 5pm
Saturday: 9.30am - 2pm
Sunday: Closed
Halesowen Library
Monday: 9am - 5pm
Tuesday: 9am - 6pm
Wednesday: 9.30am - 6pm
Thursday: 9am - 6pm
Friday: 9am - 5.30pm
Saturday: 9am - 4pm
Sunday: Closed
Kingswinford Library
Monday: 9.30am to 6pm
Tuesday: 9.30am to 4pm
Wednesday: 9.30am to 2pm
Thursday: 9.30am to 4.30pm
Friday: 9.30am to 6pm
Saturday: 9.30am to 2.30pm
Sunday: Closed
Long Lane Library
Monday: 9:30am - 1pm / 2pm - 5pm
Tuesday: 9:30am - 1pm / 2pm - 4:30pm
Wednesday: 9:30am - 1pm / 2pm - 6pm
Thursday: 9:30 am - 1pm / 2pm - 6pm
Friday: 9:30am - 1pm / 2pm - 4pm
Saturday: 10am - 1pm / 2pm - 4pm
Sunday: Closed
Lye Library
Monday: 10am to 4pm
Tuesday: 10am to 4pm
Wednesday: 10am to 4.30pm
Thursday: 10am to 4pm
Friday: 10am to 5pm
Saturday: 9.30am to 4pm
Sunday: Closed
Netherton Library
Monday: 9am - 5pm
Tuesday: 9am - 4pm
Wednesday: 9am - 5pm
Thursday: 9am - 5pm
Friday: 9am - 4pm
Saturday: Closed
Sunday: Closed
Sedgley Library
Monday: 9.30am to 4pm
Tuesday: 9.30am to 4pm
Wednesday: 9.30am to 4pm
Thursday: 9.30am to 6pm
Friday: 10am to 4pm
Saturday: 10am to 4pm
Sunday: Closed
Stourbridge Library
Monday: 9.30am - 6pm
Tuesday: 9.30am - 6pm
Wednesday: 9.30am - 6pm
Thursday: 9.30am - 5pm
Friday: 9.30am - 5pm
Saturday: 10am - 4pm
Sunday: 10am - 1.30pm
Wordsley Library
Monday: 9am to 1pm / 2pm to 5pm
Tuesday: 9am to 1pm / 2pm to 5pm
Wednesday: 9.30am to 1pm / 2pm to 5pm
Thursday: 9.30am to 1pm / 2pm to 6pm
Friday: 9.30am to 1pm / 2pm to 4pm
Saturday: 10am 2.30pm
Sunday: Closed
For more information about Dudley Libraries visit www.dudley.gov.uk/libraries
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