Agenda item - Public Involvement

To consider the following matters raised by members of the public:

 

(a)           Petitions: 

To receive any petitions presented by members of the public.

 

(b)           Written Questions:

To receive any questions submitted by the due date of 12 noon on the 5 December 2025.

 

(c)           Deputations:           

To receive any deputations submitted by the due date of 10am on the 1 December 2025.

(a)           Public Questions

 

1)             Sustainability plan for Libraries

 

79.1      Ruth Williams read the following on the questioner’s behalf:

 

We know the savings from closing our library has been estimated at £20,000. Given the school it is attached to doesn’t need the additional space, there is no realistic future for this building. If Westdene closes, what is the plan if the building sits empty and incurs security, maintenance, and deterioration costs that wipe out the claimed saving?

 

79.2      Councillor Robins provided the following reply:

 

Should Westdene Public Library close, discussions will take place with the school about their potential use of the space. Any exploration of other options for future use will consider costs, suitability and practical matters, given its attachment to the school.  

 

2)             Sustainability plan for Libraries

 

79.3      Ruth Williams read the following on the questioner’s behalf:

 

Part of your consultation mentions that the southern part of our ward go to hove library instead of Westdene. This is of course true, the southern part of our ward being Hove Park. Because our Ward is so big, you've disproportionately allocated low footfall and low responses in the consultation to a large ward. Westdene is a small community with a one-room library, and the response it has generated is huge relative to the area it serves and the library’s size.

Moreover, Westdene pupils access the library daily through the internal school door, including during unstaffed hours. We don’t believe this footfall was counted. Why has flawed and incomplete data continued to be used as the basis for recommending closure?

 

79.4      Councillor Robins provided the following reply:

 

Thank you for your feedback. Footfall and usage were only one of a number of considerations when proposals were drafted. While the ward is geographically large, the number of people visiting Westdene Library is smaller than that of most other libraries in the city. 

The school do access the library through the internal door and, while we do not have access to data for the number of pupil visits, we are able to track the number of items issued and the number of library cards in use, which would reflect school usage of the book stock. These measures were low compared to other libraries in the city and this data was included in the rationale for proposals for change. 

We are aware the school uses the space in lieu of a more developed school library space; the recommendations include the offer for officers to work closely with the school to explore how the Library Service can support pupils to access books and study space. There are options to explore which could provide an improved school library offer, with donations of books and furniture.

 

3)             Sustainability plan for Libraries

 

79.5      Ruth Williams read the following question:

 

Clause 3.50 records that the People Overview & Scrutiny Committee formally recommended that Cabinet ‘do not proceed with the libraries closure plan at this time’; why is Cabinet choosing to advance the closure of Westdene Library despite this scrutiny warning?

 

79.6      Councillor Robins provided the following reply:

 

We recognise the Scrutiny Committee’s recommendation and have carefully considered their recommendations alongside other factors before making our final recommendations to Cabinet today. The report sets out in detail the rationale for the final recommendations.

 

4)             Sustainability plan for Libraries

 

79.7      Ruth Williams read the following on the questioner’s behalf:

 

Given that the Equality Impact Assessment identifies elderly residents, disabled residents, and SEN children as disproportionately affected by the closure of Westdene Library, how can councillors lawfully proceed with a permanent closure without first demonstrating that all reasonable alternatives have been fully explored and transparently costed in a way that satisfies the Public Sector Equality Duty?

 

79.8      Councillor Robins provided the following reply:

 

We are committed to meeting our Public Sector Equality Duty and therefore have explored and described the impact on residents and other stakeholders in detail in the accompanying EIA. The report concludes that action can be taken, with caution.  

 

5)             Sustainability plan for Libraries

 

79.9      Ruth Williams read the following on the questioner’s behalf:

 

The report relies heavily on not only the use of alternative libraries, which are genuinely challenging for primary age, elderly and disabled in our community to access (and a double bus option with a major A road between is not an acceptable alternative for these vulnerable groups) but also strong reliance is placed on the Home Delivery Service. The service is only staffed and operated by volunteers and, as such, is irregular (only running when suitably mobile volunteers are available) and unreliable.  As the library service has also placed a ban on recruiting new volunteers, how will councillors ensure that this service is up to the job that you claim it needs to be in order to provide a genuinely workable acceptable alternative for those that need it most if Westdene Library closes?

 

79.10   Councillor Robins provided the following reply:

 

We acknowledge concerns about the Home Delivery Service. 

The Library Service does include permanent staff allocated to the management of this service, and they will continue to review the service and respond to changing needs as a result of the proposals.

 

6)             Sustainability plan for Libraries

 

79.11   Ruth Williams read the following on the questioner’s behalf:

 

Councillors are being asked to vote on permanently closing Westdene Library when some of the most important information still hasn’t been published. We still haven’t seen the financial figures for what Jubilee Library will actually cost once the PFI ends, we haven’t seen our feedback properly incorporated into your consultation papers, and we haven’t seen the assessment of the city-wide alternative that could save money without closures. Without those pieces of evidence, what is this decision actually being based on?

 

79.12   Councillor Robins provided the following reply:

 

Councillors have been provided with a substantial and detailed report and appendices on which to base their decisions, including the rationale for the proposed changes, exploration of alternative suggestions for savings, the Needs and Use Analysis and Equality Impact Assessment. 

Public Consultation responses are included in the appendix and Cabinet members have been given access to the full text of all consultation responses, including emails and letters from residents of Westdene and pupils of the school. 

Given the financial challenges presented by end of the Jubilee Library PFI contract and associated funding, we know there will be further work needed around the future sustainability of the Library Service. More information is available the interactive PFI dashboard on gov.uk. However, those changes will not impact the council until 2029 and the service was allocated savings targets to meet in 2025-27. The revenue budget reduction has already been agreed at Budget Council in February 2025.  

The administration is confident that the current recommendations can be delivered and still provide an effective and comprehensive library service. 

 

7)             Sustainability plan for Libraries

 

79.13   Ruth Williams read the following on the questioner’s behalf:

 

The footfall data on which the review of Westdene Library's use was based appears to have been from a period prior to the announcement of proposed closure and consultation. The footfall and use since that announcement has increased significantly. Residents often move in/out of Westdene and many were not aware of the library's existence (if you enter the school only from the bottom field or do not pass through the one-way system on Bankside you would not see that it exists because it is very small). The proposal to close the library has highlighted its existence to local residents and the need/use mix has since increased. Why has there been no attempt to look at the current data, in the light of the recommendation by the People Overview & Scrutiny Committee not to go ahead with the proposals to close the library?

 

79.14   Councillor Robins provided the following reply:

 

It’s been good to hear from local residents that they value their local library and we can see from the data that use has improved slightly over the summer. 

Footfall and usage were only one of a number of considerations when proposals were drafted. We also looked at need, geographic spread and costs of delivery. 

While there are some fluctuations in use over the year, Westdene membership, borrowing and visitor figures continue to be among the lowest in the city. Changes at this library therefore would affect a relatively small number of residents. 

 

8)             Sustainability plan for Libraries

 

79.15   Ruth Williams read the following on the questioner’s behalf:

 

Like Rottingdean, Westdene residents cannot resource a library in the timescale proposed and have a much higher number of elderly residents and disabled residents than other parts of the city. Additionally, Westdene has no public transport route to the proposed alternative library and long walk over two miles with hills and crossing the busy A23. Given the similarities, why is Rottingdean library recommended to be retained but Westdene to close?

 

79.16   Councillor Robins provided the following reply:

 

Consideration was given to a number of factors deciding which libraries to recommend for closure. These included levels of need in each area, including car ownership, measures of deprivation and use.

We recognise the make up of the community living in this area. Library closures will negatively impact residents and could have a disproportionate impact on older residents and those who are disabled, who may find it more difficult to travel to alternative sites. However, the usage figures at Westdene are considerably lower than those at Rottingdean, so any changes there would impact less residents. On balance, in order to achieve savings targets, these recommendations are brought to Cabinet today.

For those who would not be able to travel to alternative sites, the Home Library Service and online offer could support continuing access to library services. We will be working with residents in the areas affected to support them to access alternatives between now and the proposed closure date of 1st April.

 

9)             Sustainability plan for Libraries

 

79.17   The questioner was not present at the meeting.

 

10)          Sustainability plan for Libraries

 

79.18   Ruth Williams read the following on the questioner’s behalf:

 

You’ve described these closures as the ‘first phase’, with additional community-library closures already being planned or modelled for the next phase. Why has the public not been told that this is the beginning of a wider programme?

 

79.19   Councillor Robins provided the following reply:

 

There are no plans or models for additional community library closures. The proposals being discussed today are to meet the savings target assigned to Library Services. There are no further savings identified for libraries in the next financial year.

 

11)          Sustainability plan for Libraries

 

79.20   Julie Lawrence read the following question:

 

We welcome the fact that the proposal to close Rottingdean library has now been removed from the proposals for Cabinet.  This responds to the serious concerns raised by residents about losing Rottingdean library that acts a crucial community hub and welcomes nearly 30,000 visits annually, fosters literacy among local school children—especially those without access to books at home, as well as providing older residents with vital educational information, support, and opportunities for social interaction.  Will the Cabinet now remove any uncertainty by providing an assurance that if your officers find that “alternative community-based provision” is not possible, Rottingdean Library will remain as part of the library network and that all possible alternatives will be fully explored and presented to Cabinet before any libraries are considered for closure in the future?

 

79.21   Councillor Robins provided the following reply:

 

The proposal for closure is not currently being taken forward. Officers will be continuing to work with the community to explore options which could support the longer term sustainability of the service, as we recognise any changes would impact a considerable number of residents. The recommendations today suggest a report back to Cabinet in 12 months time.

If any proposals were developed for significant changes to how community libraries in the city are managed in the future would require us to follow similar process to those undertaken this year, including a public consultation.