Some Serious News

FOFL was formed three years ago with the aim of ‘preserving and protecting’ the library and the time has now come for this to happen.

Recent budget cuts mean that Freshwater Library will go down to single staffing and the IW Council want local communities to run the building/grounds and to provide a bank of volunteers.

The Library service will help community groups (like FOFL) to develop and train a flexible pool of volunteers to supplement this single staffing.

The Isle of Wight Council is also seeking to work in partnership with local councils and groups to take on the running costs of the building and they want this implemented by October 2015.

FOFL has started to take immediate action and we will let members know about the progress we are making. We do want to keep the Library Service operating in Freshwater and know how much our members love the building and its site.

There will be a need for volunteers to work in the library once it goes down to single person staffing and FOFL will be coordinating this so we welcome any offers of support from our members or anybody who wants to get involved.

We will also need to do some serious fundraising, so the support of the local community is crucial.

Please contact us if you’d like to join FOFL or click here to join online, can offer help, feel you have a useful skill or just want to be involved in preserving our wonderful library, a valuable community resource. We really do need your help and support.

In the meantime, here’s a link to our local giving page: http://localgiving.com/charity/friendsoffreshwaterlibrary