Discussions on future of family library ongoing

The Isle of Man's Family Library first opened as an independent charity in 2011

Discussions to rescue a struggling family library and its mobile services are ongoing, it has been confirmed.

The Isle of Man's Family Library closed its doors on Thursday after directors said it was expected make losses of £100,000 due to rising costs and declining incomes.

Signage attached to the exterior of the facility on the Westmoreland Road site in Douglas has now been taken down.

A spokesman for the charity confirmed that a new team of directors had teamed up with the facility's staff in a bid to revive the services in future through a "combination of private backers and government funding".

More than £8,700 has been donated to a fundraiser set up by volunteer group The Friends of the Family Library, who previously described the service as "a lifeline".

The library had offered activities to young people, schools and adults, as well as operating a mobile library in rural areas and a home service for those who are housebound.

The services have been run as an independent charity since full funding was pulled by the Department of Education in 2011 in response to a reduction in the island's VAT income.

The government agreed to a five-year funding plan on a sliding scale in 2022, beginning with £125,000 in August of that year, with the final sum of £65,000 due to be awarded in August 2026 for use until July 2027.

Signage outside of the Isle of Man's Family Library has been taken down

In response to a written question during the May sitting of Tynwald, it was confirmed there were no plans to fund the community library from the education department's budget.

But in June, Tynwald members backed Treasury Minister's Alex Allinson's proposal for the Council of Ministers to work with the charity to consider available options, after getting an understanding its financial position.

At the time a spokesman for the library said those behind the facility had been "encouraged by the growing recognition among local politicians of the library's value and an urgent need for a sustainable funding model".

However, he said it would be "irresponsible for us to continue beyond 31 July without being able to guarantee the necessary funding to operate for the following 12 months".