A LIBRARY will close and be replaced by a seven day service across two sites in the latest development to proposed cuts.

Hollingbury Library in Brighton will have its book collection divided between Hollingbury and Patcham Children’s Centre and the Old Boat Community Centre as part of amended plans following a public consultation.

And plans to close the Hove Library building and move services into Hove Museum have also now been put back by up to a year until 2018.

Council leader Warren Morgan said the consultation showed public backing for his administration’s plans to cut the £5.25 million libraries’ budget by a fifth by 2020.

It had been proposed to move Hollingbury Library, currently open for 19 hours a week on Mondays, Thursday and Saturdays, into nearby Hollingbury and Patcham Children’s Centre for three days a week, reducing the service to just children’s books.

This will go ahead but following discussions with ward councillors, an additional seven day community library collection in the Old Boat Community Centre will now be created.

Hollingbury and Westdene libraries will also now be staffed one day a week with trained employees supporting volunteers and staff at the community centre and junior school.

The current Hollingbury Library building in County Oak Avenue is said to be in need of “significant repairs” and will be sold.

Almost half of Hollingbury Library users were against the original proposals even though more than half of its users also use another library.

Significant reductions to Westdene Library by accommodating a classroom for Westdene Primary School will go ahead despite it being the most unpopular of the proposals among its users with seven in ten against the plans.

Support for the Hove Library move was evenly split among users of the Church Road facility with 50 per cent in favour and 47 per cent against while a petition opposing the move has now attracted more than 3,800 signatures.

A full business case for the Hove Library proposals will now be completed with further public consultation and a planning application meaning the redevelopment of Hove Museum cannot be completed until the start of 2018.

Conservative Councillor Lee Wares said: “This is great news for Hollingbury residents.

“Not only has a full service been retained but accessibility has been increased by an extra four days and residents will have access to a café and comfortable space and more pleasant surroundings.”

Cllr Alan Robins, lead Member for libraries, said: “I am delighted to hear that the Conservative councillors accept that our library proposals can achieve better outcomes for residents even when reducing costs.

"It is essential to saving community libraries like Hollingbury that Hove Library move is supported.

"This is not so much a reversal but rather a positive outcome of the consultations on the Libraries Plan.”