The Paul Hamlyn public library at the British Museum, which is home to more than 50,000 books and journals, is under threat of closure as part of a cost-cutting exercise.
A spokeswoman for the British Museum said it regretted that it was having to consider the closure of the library as part of its efforts to accommodate a 15% cut to the museum’s grant-in-aid budget.
The move has been heavily criticised by the Historic Libraries Forum, which said in a statement to its members: “This library is an invaluable resource for the public and for museum staff, and plays an important role in public access at the museum, providing support for teachers, schoolchildren and their families.”
The forum also raised concerns about possible staff redundancies and the future of the library collection.
The spokeswoman for the museum said: “Eleven staff will be affected. We are still discussing what will happen to the books and consulting with the sponsor.”
Staff have been canvassed as part of a 90-day internal consultation about the future of the library.
Robert Dufton, director of the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, said: “We would be disappointed to see the closure of the Paul Hamlyn Library at the British Museum. We believe that the library has an important part to play, alongside online resources, in enabling effective and deep learning, and providing information about the collections at the museum.”
The library has been temporarily relocated from the Reading Room. The British Museum spokeswoman said it had been given planning permission to continue to use the Reading Room for temporary exhibitions until 2014.
“No decisions regarding its future use have yet been made but the museum will consult widely on proposals,” said the spokeswoman.
The library’s collections cover the range of world cultures represented in the museum and include material relating to the history and development of the museum.
A spokeswoman for the British Museum said it regretted that it was having to consider the closure of the library as part of its efforts to accommodate a 15% cut to the museum’s grant-in-aid budget.
The move has been heavily criticised by the Historic Libraries Forum, which said in a statement to its members: “This library is an invaluable resource for the public and for museum staff, and plays an important role in public access at the museum, providing support for teachers, schoolchildren and their families.”
The forum also raised concerns about possible staff redundancies and the future of the library collection.
The spokeswoman for the museum said: “Eleven staff will be affected. We are still discussing what will happen to the books and consulting with the sponsor.”
Staff have been canvassed as part of a 90-day internal consultation about the future of the library.
Robert Dufton, director of the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, said: “We would be disappointed to see the closure of the Paul Hamlyn Library at the British Museum. We believe that the library has an important part to play, alongside online resources, in enabling effective and deep learning, and providing information about the collections at the museum.”
The library has been temporarily relocated from the Reading Room. The British Museum spokeswoman said it had been given planning permission to continue to use the Reading Room for temporary exhibitions until 2014.
“No decisions regarding its future use have yet been made but the museum will consult widely on proposals,” said the spokeswoman.
The library’s collections cover the range of world cultures represented in the museum and include material relating to the history and development of the museum.