North Somerset Council is consulting the public between July and October 2025 on changes to library services to save £433 000 due to budget pressures. Feedback from residents will shape North Somerset Council’s final decisions, expected in February 2026. Below is a summary of the available options within the consultation. Full details can be found within the consultation document which can be found by following this LINK

Option A: Communities will be offered the opportunity to manage Pill and Winscombe libraries. If no viable community-led solutions are found, they may face closure.

Option B: Pill Library would remain part of the North Somerset Library network, as community need could be considered high.

Option C: The community will be offered the opportunity to manage Pill. If no viable community-led solution is found, the library may face closure.

Pill and Easton-in-Gordano Parish Council supports option B of the consultation. We strongly oppose the potential closure of Pill Library and Children’s Centre and recommend that the service continues to be managed by North Somerset Council and remains part of their library network.

Our library is far more than a place to borrow books – it is a vital community hub used by people of all ages, from pre-school children to the elderly. It provides a safe and accessible space for learning, play, wellbeing and social connection, supporting groups such as local childminders, schools and families. It also offers essential extended services, including free wifi, a warm room in the winter months, dispensation of Healthy Start vitamins, and access to free hot drinks and charging facilities. Last year alone, the library hosted over 100 events, averaging around one every weekday it is open.

Pill West, where the library is situated, is identified as one of the most deprived areas in North Somerset. Many residents face challenges linked to low income, poor health, and limited access to digital services. North Somerset Council themselves identify within their consultation document that, within Pill, ‘community need is considered high’. Losing the library would risk increasing health inequalities and cutting off services from those who need them most. Furthermore, with large housing developments planned, demand for local facilities like Pill Library will only grow in the future if these developments gain planning permission.

Volunteers already make a huge contribution within our parish, but relying solely on a community managed library service, as suggested in options A and C of the consultation, would put huge pressure on our volunteer network and may lead to the permanent loss of this, or other services. The consultation document itself states that if options A or C are chosen ‘If no viable community-led solutions are found, these libraries may unfortunately have to close so that the required level of savings can be made’. Equally, signposting residents to Portishead Library or a mobile alternative would strip away the wide range of extended local services that Pill Library currently provides.

For these reasons, Pill and Easton-in-Gordano Parish Council firmly recommend that North Somerset Council selects Option B, ensuring Pill Library remains a Council-managed service at the heart of our community, with potential for exploration of more cost-effective ways to sustain it into the future.