TOWN councillors are urging residents to attend public meetings to submit their views on cuts to Ryedale’s library services.

Two meetings have been arranged in Kirkbymoorside and Helmsley following news that North Yorkshire County Council needs to make cuts of £1.6m.

The county council is currently in the middle of a consultation process on changes to library services in a bid to make savings as the council attempts to save about £167m in its overall spending.

The consultation process has so far seen the county council look at creating three categories of libraries, which would mean Kirkbymoorside library would be staffed by volunteers.

Town mayor, Councillor Chris Dowie said the library has about 20 volunteers, but that between 60 to 80 would be needed in order for the library to stay open.

She said: “I just think it is really short-sighted of the county council. It would be difficult for us to recruit that number of volunteers as people don’t want to volunteer for hours the same as another full time job. There is a huge support for libraries to stay open from everyone across the community.”

If the proposals go ahead and Kirkbymoorside library was unable to recruit volunteers and no partners came forward, then it would be at risk of closure.

Coun Dowie said: “It is going to affect schoolchildren, parents who have pre-school children and the elderly who come to the library to socialise and read the paper because they will now be stuck at home The county council has said they will put some money towards it but we don’t know how much that would be.”

The other two libraries mentioned in the consultations would be core and hybrid libraries. One main town in each of North Yorkshire’s seven districts will keep a core library, which will be Malton for Ryedale, and these would be run by a combination of paid staff and volunteers.

The hybrid libraries will be for larger, busier libraries, including Pickering, which will also have volunteers working alongside paid staff.

The consultation began in November following other discussion in December 2010 which resulted in the number of staff being cut and opening hours in some libraries reduced.

Councillor Val Arnold, who called for the meetings, said: “There is concern in both towns about the future of the two libraries.

"They are a valuable asset to our communities and I am hoping that following the decision that they should not be run by the county library service in the future, we can recruit volunteers to do so, as has happened at a number of other towns in North Yorkshire."

“It is vital that we keep the library service operating because it is invaluable to people of all ages, from youngsters to old people who not only as the library service, but can also use the computers.”

Officers from North Yorkshire County Council library services have said they will be attending both meetings.

The Kirkbymoorside meeting will be held at the town’s Methodist Church Hall on Tuesday, at 7.15pm, and the Helmsley meeting will be held on Wednesday, January 21, at 7pm, in the town hall.

The consultation process will run until February 8, 2015. To give your views, visit northyorks.gov.uk