Save our Saturdays!
- Birmingham Loves Libraries
- Jun 18
- 3 min read
Updated: Jun 23
Want to take action?
Sign our petition here. More ways to spread the library love (and protest the cuts) at the end of this post!
Saturday is a busy day for public libraries across the city. For many residents—including those who work or study during the week, families with young children, and school-age children—Saturday is the only chance to visit their local library.
Now those Saturday library days are under threat: Birmingham City Council have announced that only 10 libraries across the city will be open every Saturday - the 10 hub libraries. Only 8 others will be open alternate Saturdays (meaning that they will be open one week on Saturday and then another week closed on Saturday and open on a weekday instead). The other 9 libraries will be closed every Saturday.
This is a cut of 50% to Saturday opening hours across the city! Before the "temporary" closures of July 2024, there were the equivalent of 28 libraries open on Saturday -- 30 if we include Spring Hill (now closed) and Balsall Heath (undergoing renovation). Under the new plans, that total is to be cut by 50% with only 10 open every Saturday and then 8 more open every other Saturday - equivalent to 14 libraries open every Saturday.
Libraries host a wide range of Saturday activities: children’s clubs, reading groups, crafts, repair cafés, and community sessions. Cutting access completely or in half will reduce or cancel many of these events, directly impacting those who depend on them and weakening the library’s vital role as a community hub.
The Council has a legal duty to provide a “comprehensive and efficient” library service under the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964. Removing guaranteed weekly Saturday access does not meet this standard and disproportionately affects working people, families, and children.
Saturday closures were not presented clearly in the recent public consultation. A major change like this should not be implemented without transparent public input. Many libraries have already suffered “temporary” weekday closures, with little evidence of serious recruitment to restore services. Now, more cuts are being introduced without clear, branch-by-branch timetables. In many neighbourhoods, volunteers and Friends groups have stepped up to support their libraries. The Council’s lack of transparency and poor communication undermines these efforts, discourages community involvement, and accelerates the decline of essential services.
Libraries are not luxuries. They are learning centres, safe spaces, warm hubs, and community lifelines. Birmingham needs more access, not less.
We urge Birmingham City Council to:
Restore full Saturday opening across all library branches;
Reverse weekday closures;
Publish clear schedules for weekly access at each site;
Invest in, not dismantle, our city’s public libraries.
TAKE ACTION - Share the library love:
Please write to your councillors, Council Leader John Cotton (john.cotton@birmingham.gov.uk) & Cabinet Members responsible for implementing the new libraries model Cllrs Saima Suleman, Rob Pocock, and Jamie Tennant (saima.suleman@birmingham.gov.uk; rob.pocock@birmingham.gov.uk; Jamie.Tennant@birmingham.gov.uk) to say that you oppose the cabinet decision to cut our library service budget by 40% and reduce Saturday access by 50% across the city. Please include why you love your library! <3
Print and distribute our 'Save our Saturdays' posters! JPEG and PDF files below! A huge thanks to @chris.makes.things for the design!
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