Book tells the story of axe threat Lytham library

Amid the ongoing uncertainty over Lytham Library's future, the focus has been put on its history in a new book.
Brian TurnerBrian Turner
Brian Turner

Brian Turner, the locally-based author whose 2008 volume Victorian Lytham proved a big hit, has published a glossy 32-page volume entitled The Story of Lytham Institute and Library.

The Institute building on Clifton Street was home to the town’s library for more than a century up to last year, when it was closed by Lancashire County Council’s then ruling Labour group under a wave of budget cuts.

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As campaigners battle to see it revive after the now ruling Conservatives vowed to reopen all closed libraries, Brian says he was inspired by the closure to tell the full story of the building’s history.

“This history of the Lytham Institute is, in a way, a further chapter to my book Victorian Lytham,” he said.

“It has been prompted by the closure precisely 99 years after the Institute and Library passed into council hands for safekeeping.

“In determining the building’s future, a major consideration should be the fact that it was created by the community for the community and since hardly anything has been written on the subject, this seems a good time to look at its history.”

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The County Council has pledged that a library will return to Lytham but other venues are in the frame along with the Institute.

The Friends of Lytham Library, have an open day planned there on December 16 and have welcomed the book, which is on sale at Lytham Heritage Centre, Henry Street, for £7.50. Chairman Christine Marshall said: “It’s a fascinating read.”