LIBRARY opening hours are being slashed across the borough as part of Dudley Council’s cost saving measures.

From August 1, more than 100 hours will be lost each week at the 14 libraries and archive centre combined, which the local authority claim is due to “meeting the demands of budget cuts from central government”.

Four of the borough’s main libraries – Brierley Hill, Dudley, Halesowen, and Stourbridge – will each see their opening times reduced by 11.5 hours a week, while Sedgley Library will be closed for an extra 22.5 hours.

Opening hours will also be drastically cut at the borough’s Archive and Local History Centre, as well as the libraries in Coseley, Cradley, Gornal, Kingswinford, Long Lane, Lye, Netherton and Wordsley.

Dudley Council said the move comes after a three month consultation which the authority carried out with service users.

However, a council spokeswoman reiterated that all of the libraries will be open for at least six days a week, with Dudley and Stourbridge’s venues staying open every day and evening opening times will continue “where there is public demand”.

Councillor Rachel Harris, cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said: “The decision to reduce our opening times reflects a need to reduce budgets across the council in a time of huge cuts to local government funding.

“The good news is that no libraries are closing. Instead we have reduced the opening hours but only after listening to feedback from customers and looking closely at usage data which highlighted when people were actually using the libraries.”

The new opening times for the borough’s libraries and archive centre are as follows:

Archive and Local History Centre

Monday: Closed

Tuesday: 9.30am to 5pm

Wednesday: 10.30am to 4pm

Thursday: 10.30pm to 4pm

Friday: 10.30pm to 4pm

Saturday: 10am to 4.30pm

Sunday: Closed

Brierley Hill Library

Monday: 9.30am to 6pm

Tuesday: 9am to 6pm

Wednesday: 9am to 5pm

Thursday: 9am to 6pm

Friday: 9am to 6pm

Saturday: 9.30am to 4pm

Sunday: Closed

Coseley Library

Monday: 10am - 6pm

Tuesday: 10am - 4pm

Wednesday: 10am - 4pm

Thursday: 9am - 5pm

Friday: 9am - 4.30pm

Saturday: 9.30am - 1pm

Sunday: Closed

Cradley Library

Monday: 10am to 1pm / 2pm to 6pm

Tuesday: 10am to 1pm / 2pm to 5.30pm

Wednesday: 10am to 1pm / 2pm to 5.30pm

Thursday: 10am to 1pm / 2pm to 5.30pm

Friday: 9am to 1pm / 2pm to 5.30pm

Saturday: 10am to 2pm

Sunday: Closed

Dudley Library

Monday: 9.30am - 6pm

Tuesday: 9.30am - 6pm

Wednesday: 9.30am - 6pm

Thursday: 9.30am - 5pm

Friday: 9.30am - 5pm

Saturday: 10am - 4pm

Sunday: 10am - 1.30pm

Gornal Library

Monday: 9.30am - 1pm / 2pm - 5pm

Tuesday: 9.30am - 1pm / 2pm - 6pm

Wednesday: 9.30am - 1pm / 2pm - 5pm

Thursday: 9.30am - 1pm / 2pm - 5pm

Friday: 9.30am - 1pm / 2pm - 5pm

Saturday: 9.30am - 2pm

Sunday: Closed

Halesowen Library

Monday: 9am - 5pm

Tuesday: 9am - 6pm

Wednesday: 9.30am - 6pm

Thursday: 9am - 6pm

Friday: 9am - 5.30pm

Saturday: 9am - 4pm

Sunday: Closed

Kingswinford Library

Monday: 9.30am to 6pm

Tuesday: 9.30am to 4pm

Wednesday: 9.30am to 2pm

Thursday: 9.30am to 4.30pm

Friday: 9.30am to 6pm

Saturday: 9.30am to 2.30pm

Sunday: Closed

Long Lane Library

Monday: 9:30am - 1pm / 2pm - 5pm

Tuesday: 9:30am - 1pm / 2pm - 4:30pm

Wednesday: 9:30am - 1pm / 2pm - 6pm

Thursday: 9:30 am - 1pm / 2pm - 6pm

Friday: 9:30am - 1pm / 2pm - 4pm

Saturday: 10am - 1pm / 2pm - 4pm

Sunday: Closed

Lye Library

Monday: 10am to 4pm

Tuesday: 10am to 4pm

Wednesday: 10am to 4.30pm

Thursday: 10am to 4pm

Friday: 10am to 5pm

Saturday: 9.30am to 4pm

Sunday: Closed

Netherton Library

Monday: 9am - 5pm

Tuesday: 9am - 4pm

Wednesday: 9am - 5pm

Thursday: 9am - 5pm

Friday: 9am - 4pm

Saturday: Closed

Sunday: Closed

Sedgley Library

Monday: 9.30am to 4pm

Tuesday: 9.30am to 4pm

Wednesday: 9.30am to 4pm

Thursday: 9.30am to 6pm

Friday: 10am to 4pm

Saturday: 10am to 4pm

Sunday: Closed

Stourbridge Library

Monday: 9.30am - 6pm

Tuesday: 9.30am - 6pm

Wednesday: 9.30am - 6pm

Thursday: 9.30am - 5pm

Friday: 9.30am - 5pm

Saturday: 10am - 4pm

Sunday: 10am - 1.30pm

Wordsley Library

Monday: 9am to 1pm / 2pm to 5pm

Tuesday: 9am to 1pm / 2pm to 5pm

Wednesday: 9.30am to 1pm / 2pm to 5pm

Thursday: 9.30am to 1pm / 2pm to 6pm

Friday: 9.30am to 1pm / 2pm to 4pm

Saturday: 10am 2.30pm

Sunday: Closed

For more information about Dudley Libraries visit www.dudley.gov.uk/libraries