Do you use your local library? If not why not?

[Ulysees]

We're lucky enough to have a good library in our village. It's open Thursday to Saturday.

I use it pretty regularly. Order books online usually.

I rang today as a book I want isn't available and the librarian said she'll request the library buy it in. It's the Julia Child book My life in France. So there won't just be me borrowing it.

I do buy books too. I just think it's a shame more don't use their library. They'll be gone one day.

I used to but they keep reducing the hours. It's now 10-5, closed for a couple of hours for lunch and just three weekdays. It costs £1.40 to park anywhere near, then cross a couple of major roads, and into a dodgy area of town.

It's easier to park for free at my local charity shop, at weekends when I'm not working, and buy a book for £1 that I take back once I've read.

I don't doubt that the council are providing such poor hours so they can say "no one used it so we've closed it."

Love the library both the kids & I borrow real books, ebooks & audiobooks.
we're lucky to have a 30 books/card limit & they've recentLily abolished Late fines which was a relief when we all had flu (still got the books back only 3 days late)

We also buy books(mostly second hand) but there's nothing better than finding the library has just the book you want!

The freedom to let kids browse & choose books "risk free" is so important- two of mine used to have at least a 70% failure rate 😂 when they were about 8.

We're there at least twice a month but was more than weekly when they were toddlers.

I think the poor hours are because they are staffed with volunteers and don't have enough to cover longer hours.

I used to use it heavily.
Then I started losing books frequently. Had to pay to replace, how embarrassing.
Works out cheaper to buy books from charity shops.

I used to use it a fair bit for the dc but then opening hours reduced and it became one of those that was only open on the 6th Friday of months with an M in them on the full moon.

To be fair I think opening hours are better now but the problem with libraries is that you have to give the books back. I'm not very good at that. I'm more the study of person who builds a new book shelf to accommodate the new books rather than actually get rid of any.

Yes! Really lucky in our city - big central library with a fantastic children's library that's separate from the main space so I don't have to worry about nagging toddler to use quiet voice (special treat for me to go solo and browse their ENORMOUS cook book selection and all the fiction) plus a local branch library ten mins walk from our house for rhyme time. Easy free morning out. I love libraries. Love popping in to other town libraries when I'm away from home just to see what's what... similar to how other people might drop into a village church on a country walk.

I used to, can't anymore. Now I have to order any book I want, £6.50, takes ages to get, weeks, then the window for picking up is so short that I can't get there. In the end I thought No, no more.

My local library is now open approx 5 minutes a week. Not at any time convenient to me.

And I struggle to remember to return books anyway.

I love my library!! I’m always telling people it’s my favorite place!

I reserve my books online, and they’re on a shelf waiting for me when I go in. If something new is coming out, I can request it before it’s released and I’ll go on a waiting list and get an email when it’s my turn.

I was in there the other day and there were loads of people, most using the free computers.

They’re a great community resource, offering classes in various things, and toddler/child story times.

They’re open about 48 hours per week.

I use borrowbox but don't go to the actual building very often, its a bit out of the way so you have to go there deliberately, you don't walk past it while you're shopping. I like it when I do go in though, it's modern and airy with helpful staff. Uni student DS studies there when he's at home as he concentrates better.

I I tend to use it more once retired if it's still there but it's a minor faff when working full time. I do get digital books sometimes but not often as can't put them on Kindle and don't enjoy reading on tablet or phone.

I use my local libraries regularly. Sometimes the central library (in Edinburgh) and sometimes the smaller ones nearer to me. I like to have a browse and see what I can find and also order new books that I am not sure I want to pay for (in case I don't enjoy them). The central library is open Mon-Sat from 10am to 5 and open to 8pm a few days.

Our local library is about 5 mins walk from our house. I don't use it as often as I should because it's open odd hours that don't really work for me, except for the one evening session it has. It's also very small and doesn't have a wide range of stock. I miss the big library where we used to live, which was brilliant and the DC used it a lot when they were small.

I tend to use Borrowbox online a lot more now, for audiobooks and ebooks. I find that really good, especially having poor eyesight now it means I can get audiobooks and enlarge the print on ebooks.

They were going to massively downsize my local library but a big stink was kicked up so it's staying the same size. But I think it's only parents with primary age kids that use it. I read a lot and I don't use the library. I just assume that they won't have what I want and I won't be able to read it in time to avoid fines. I think about working from the library but why would I walk 25 mins when I could work from home. However, if I lived a bit closer I would probably use it more. I have used a telephone box library a couple of times, borrowed a couple of books and donated a couple of books. It's a novelty and there's no one to judge what I want to read or how long it takes me (which I know librarians don't do and that's my own projection). I have a few Kindle books but I just don't get on with using my phone or computer and prefer a physical book

No, used to loads when the kids were small and I was on ML and then PT. Now the services have been cut so far back they're not open at the weekend.

Ours is more than a library. It's the council one stop shop, a conference and events space, a.mini museum, location for the local CAB outreach, and has a cafe. It also has this...although I'm totally freaked by glass floors and can't walk on it.

How come it's £6.50? This sounds steep for a library

Wouldn't these libraries be great? Libraries for the future: Europe’s new wave of ‘meeting places for the mind’ | Libraries | The Guardian

I used to especially with DS, but he's now at school and they've reduced their opening hours somewhat oddly to Tuesday to Friday 9:30-3 , so I'm always at work when it's open and other than school holidays DS is at school. It's really close to two large primary schools too, if they had to shorten hours Wednesday to Friday 11-5 seems to make more sense plus some hours on a Saturday, to allow more people chance to access it.

I used to use it every week until l got my kindle.
Much easier for me.. l adore reading ..
But l do go with my Grandson because the new build also houses our museum and a fabulous cafe that employs disabled people ( physically and mentally).

I use the online services to read magazines, but hardly ever go to the “real” library as the opening hours are rubbish and the adult fiction section poor.

A shame as I used to go all the time as a kid.

I don't use my local library because they have combined the library with the parking shop and various other council services and there are fewer books and no dedicated library staff. If you need something there is no issue desk, you just have to find a member of staff by their "Can I help?" t-shirt, and they will not be happy to help. If you reserve a book there is no way of collecting it without a massive palaver, so I don't bother.

We are on the border of Hackney so I use their libraries instead - they are old fashioned and basic and I must say they are much more pleasant to use.

Not any more because the opening hours aren't convenient for workers. It all seems to be geared up to OAPs who are free to go in between 10am and 3pm Mon to Fri (and closed for an hour at luncthime). Then they wonder why fewer and fewer people use it!! When we first moved into the village it used to be open 9 till 5 and stayed open through lunch, opening till 8pm a couple of nights per week and all day Saturday. It seems to be run more for the benefit of the staff rather than taxpayers!

Never. I choose books by browsing and reading paragraphs (I have a deep hatred of some writing styles), which my local library is poor for, as they have a limited selection aimed at a very different reader to me. They'd be great if I could pick in a different manner, but the promise of ordering is useless to me.

I used it a lot when I lived by the big, inner city central one, but that costs £6 to get to. For that £12, I could buy between 2 and 12 second hand books from places in walking distance, so I do that and own a lot of books. I still hugely miss my university library access.

A nearby village took over their library after the council decided to close it. It's now run by a group of volunteers and it's so much better. Far longer opening hours, much more pleasant "staff" and it's somehow linked to the county library so you can still order in books from other libraries and order new releases.

We tried to do the same for our village but the council insist on keeping it under their control, so won't even enter into discussions with the Parish Council to explore options for a volunteer run "takeover".