A YEAR has passed since 22 libraries in North Yorkshire started to be run by volunteers, and a Pickering county councillor has said that they are adapting and surviving.

North Yorkshire’s library budget was almost halved from £7.8m in 2010 to £4.3m by 2018. So in April 2017, community groups took over the running of most local libraries.

County Councillor Greg White, executive member for libraries, said: “We faced difficult decisions in the face of Government cuts and libraries had to find savings.”

Across the county, almost 2,500 volunteers help to ensure that North Yorkshire’s residents can access books, information and computers. Now North Yorkshire’s libraries model is being held up as an example of best practice.

Cllr White added: “Our libraries are cherished by their communities and through the determination of volunteers they have survived and will flourish. Libraries may be changing but they still have books and reading at their core and with the help of our communities they are adapting to meet wider needs.”

People can contact their library to find out how it is marking the one-year anniversary and what events it is hosting in April.