Books, Not drugs – Council hides conversion of Library into drugs centre

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The council have succeeded in uniting parents, residents, and campaign groups under the banner “Give our children books, not drugs!”

Protest outside the library building, Coppermill Lane, 10am Wednesday 18 February.
Children especially welcome. Bring placards and banners on the “Books, not drugs” theme if you wish.

As you may have already heard, the council intends to turn St James Street Library, Coppermill Lane, into a drug users centre. It has ignored petitions signed by thousands of local residents and is refusing to restore any kind of library service to our area. The large area between Blackhorse Road and the River Lea now has no public building for use by the whole community.

The decision was made in secret at a cabinet meeting on 20 January. But news only got out weeks later when the local newspaper discovered the item tucked away in the back of a report. Local councillors hadn’t even been informed.

The nearest existing drug users centre, Turning Point, is five minutes walk away in the Alpha Centre. The nearest library, though, is a long slog uphill through a crowded High Street. Not surprisingly, few of
the old people and parents with small children who enjoyed St James Street Library now make that journey.

Since our library was closed without warning, in April 2007, St James Street Library Campaign has won every argument about it. We have proved that the library was closed wrongly, as the council did not carry out the legally required impact assessments beforehand. We have disproved one council claim after another.

But despite being proved wrong on every point, the council is pushing ahead with a plan that we now discover was made in 2004.

No wonder they didn’t bother to consult us. This was all decided long before they started coming up with bogus excuses such as:

• “We needed to close the library to save £70,000 a year“.
The decision was made at a meeting at which the councillors voted themselves a pay rise totalling £230,000 a year. A smaller payrise would have saved the library and still have taken them well over the average London basic allowance.

* “It had no disabled access“.
It not only did have disabled access — it was regularly used by local residents in wheelchairs — but it also had the only disabled toilet at this end of the High Street. There are now no similar facilities available.

* “It wasn’t well used“.
St James Street was the borough’s smallest library, but it was well used by local residents of all ages, especially old people and parents dropping in on their way back from school. This not only provided older people with one of their few chances to meet and relax without paying. It introduced children to reading outside school — which government reports have shown is one of the most important factors in their later success in life. Many local children, living in overcrowded conditions, did their homework in the library. Council bureaucrats don’t understand that a library’s use can’t always be measured in numbers of books borrowed.

There is one frighteningly relevant aspect to the planned drug centre.  Libraries help children to do well, not only at school but throughout life. Children who fall behind at school are more likely to slip into drug abuse, as are children who haven’t got anything to do in their spare time. Is the council very cynically preparing the next step for our children?

Join us on Wednesday morning at 10am (18th Feb) to show the council that St James Street Library must be reopened for the whole community.

Janet Wright

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead.

Below is the council decision, well hidden from residents:

1. Drug Services Refurbishment

In 2004, £600,000 from Waltham Forest Primary Care Trust was set aside for the Drug Action Team to utilise public sector properties earmarked for disposal, to house drug treatment provision. In addition to this a further £67,000 has been received from the Primary Care Trust in 2008/09.
This scheme comprises three projects. …..
The third project concerns the refurbishment of a site in Coppermill Lane, which formerly accommodated the St. James’s St. Library. The aim is to provide enough capacity to house the borough’s open access service hub.
Preliminary works will be carried out in 2008/09. The majority of the work, costing an estimated £350,000, is expected to take place in 2009/10 and therefore this amount will form part of next year’s capital budget.