Libraries will be open for less in Hackney due to budget cuts, a Council Proposal has revealed.
Library services are to face a 15% cut over the next two years, £773,000 per year, impacting jobs and resources in some of the borough’s libraries.
Local resident Sally Skaife said: “[Libraries mean] the elderly have a place to go to relieve isolation. They offer a free education for all […] libraries are a vital asset for working class people and should be fully supported.”
“I know things are tough at the minute, but the government is to blame”
A 2025 Hackney Council survey showed that 30% of daily computer users in its libraries were in temporary housing, homeless, or in council housing. It also revealed that many of these residents also use public libraries as warm spaces.
The council’s proposed shortened opening hours will reduce their access.
Hackney resident Trace Hammond said: “Closing libraries this time of year is going to impact people who use them as warm spaces […] people on low income will suffer.”
In a public appeal, the local branch of Unison trade union, said: “[We] demand the council use its financial reserves temporarily while securing fairer Government funding.”
Ms Hammond said: “I think the people in charge should take a pay cut […] I know things are tough at the minute, but the Government is to blame.”
Hackney Council has opened a public consultation, where residents are welcome to share their views or object to the proposals before they are finalised.
Councillor Chris Kennedy said: “By hearing from those who use them, we are confident we can find the right approach that minimises the impact of reduced hours and means our libraries continue to provide their vital services to our communities.”
Edie Holt is an MA Newspaper Journalism student at City St George's. She has previously written for The Daily Mail, The New World, and The Student (University of Edinburgh) on Culture, Sport, News, and Opinion.