Aberdeen City Council will reconsider the decision made at the Council Budget meeting on 1 March 2023 to close Cornhill, Cults, Ferryhill, Kaimhill, Northfield and Woodside libraries. This decision will be made at full council in December 2023.
To inform this decision Aberdeen City Council will complete a full Integrated Impact Assessment for each of the 6 libraries. The Integrated Impact Assessment will consider whether the closures have had any impact on users which are related to their protected characteristics. The protected characteristics are age, disability, pregnancy and maternity, religion and belief, race, sex, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership. It is important that all library users who have been affected by the closure of Cornhill, Cults, Ferryhill, Kaimhill, Northfield and Woodside libraries, have a fair and equal opportunity to have an input.
There will be a period of consultation from 11 September to 6 November 2023 and its purpose is to understand the impact that these library closures have had on communities and in particular, any impacts related to protected characteristics.
At the 1 March 2023 Council Budget meeting, £46.6 million of savings were confirmed for 2023/24. This included the decision to make savings through the closure of six libraries. This decision was based on library usage across the library estate and consideration of:
- Number of visits
- Number of issues per site
- Number of Wi-Fi use
- Number of (public) Personal Computer use
- Number of enquiries
- Number of events
Consultation Survey
It is important that all library users who have been affected by the closure of Cornhill, Cults, Ferryhill, Kaimhill, Northfield and Woodside libraries, have the opportunity to have input into the assessment.
Various tools will be used to include written, digital, face to face and alternative formats to ensure participation is inclusive for all.
If you (or anyone you know) require a paper copy of the survey, please visit your nearest library.
A copy of the consultation is available to download. Completed consultations can be handed in to any city library or emailed to LibraryEvents@aberdeencity.gov.uk.