Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure people in rural communities can access library services.

The Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 requires all local authorities in England to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service. Each local authority is responsible for assessing the needs of their local communities and designing a library service to meet those needs within their available resources.

Library service provision, including the number and location of static libraries, should take account of factors such as the rurality of the area and the availability and cost of public transport links. The statutory library provision in Nottinghamshire is delivered from 58 static libraries, as well as a mobile library service, consisting of three library vehicles, and a home library service.

The Libraries Improvement Fund which enables library services to upgrade buildings and technology so they are better placed to respond to the changing ways people are using them, has, since June 2021, provided nearly £400,000 to support various projects in Nottinghamshire libraries, including self-service technology in Huthwaite.