HAGLEY residents are celebrating the long term security of the village library after threats of cuts to the service were made by Worcestershire County Council.

The parish council has signed a ground-breaking 10-year lease with the county council in exchange for being in charge of the building’s upkeep.

Action was taken to secure the future of the library when the county council’s review of library services indicated the threat of possible closure and replacement with a mobile van service.

Steve Colella, chairman of the parish council said: “This is fantastic news for everyone who uses and loves Hagley Library.

“The parish council received a clear mandate from local residents to save the library and we have done just that.”

The parish council has also succeeded in registering the library building as a protected ‘community asset’ which imposes certain constraints on any future plans to dispose of it.

But in the longer term, the village authority, together with Hagley Community Association, are creating plans for a new community Hub, which, if successful, would see a new community centre co-located with other village facilities, including the library service.

Cllr Colella added: “We are currently unsure about how long the community hub project will take, as we are currently only in the second phase of consulting with the public.

“But this 10-year lease will give us enough time to make sure the library will be safe until the future developments are finalised.”