Libraries 'losing their place in our lives' as lending falls 25%

Public libraries are being abandoned by readers in a crisis of confidence that has seen loans drop by 25 per cent in a decade and book spending fall by a third, a government report said yesterday.

Public libraries are being abandoned by readers in a crisis of confidence that has seen loans drop by 25 per cent in a decade and book spending fall by a third, a government report said yesterday.

The Audit Commission found that the arrival of the internet and a boom in bookshop sales means libraries are "losing their place in people's lives" by no longer offering a service for all.

The study of the 3,930 council-run libraries in England and Wales also discovered that local authorities can provide new hi-tech equipment but struggle to maintain library buildings.

More than half of councils have libraries in buildings too old or in disrepair and often located in areas where there is no longer sufficient demand.

The commission, the watchdog for public spending, said that while libraries were still a popular resource, with 290 million visits a year, they were in danger of becoming a ghetto for the poor.

Rather than serving as a focus for community activities and information, libraries would serve as a resource for those who could not afford to buy books.

It pointed to the success of bookshops in increasing sales by 25 per cent in the past decade while library visits had fallen by 17 per cent and there had been a drop of 10 per cent in libraries open for 30 hours or more per week.

The report said: "Libraries hold an important place in people's hearts, but they are losing their place in people's lives. If current trends continue, libraries will increasingly become a minority service – driven less by the desire to access books and information than by the needs of those who cannot afford to go elsewhere."

A poll of readers found users were driven to use libraries most when there was guaranteed availability of books that interested them at times they could attend.

As a result, local authorities should make libraries more like bookshops, with extended opening hours, comfortable and attractive surroundings and accessible locations, the commission said.

Tim Owen, of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals, which represents librarians, said: "It is superficial to say we should be more like bookshops. Libraries face a range of fixed costs such as staff and buildings. A lot of effort has gone into providing technology and it costs money to extend opening hours. That means there is often no money for books – it is a question of more resources."