On Monday 7pm at Hendon Town Hall, we will be fighting on behalf of the community to stop the flagship library of Barnet and the cultural soul of Hendon - our 100-year old library building - being given away.
Not only is Hendon Library hugely-loved and iconic (I don't use that word lightly but it truly is!) but it also has an amazing and important history. It was where children's libraries were created and the BBC show Jackanory was inspired.
Hendon Library has always thrived despite prolonged and inexplicable sabotage beginning in 2010 around the time this bizarre article appeared in The Hendon Times
"HENDON Library is one of the most used in the country, attracting nearly 800,000 visitors last year... Barnet Council is currently consulting with residents about the future of the library service, with potential changes including the closure of some facilities".
So, at the same time as Hendon Library was one of the top ten most visited libraries in the UK, Barnet Council was "consulting" on closing down some of its facilities!?!
Indeed, over the past ten years, despite passionate opposition from the community, most of the excellent services at Hendon Library have been diminished or cut and much of the building leased out.
Now the entire building is due to be handed to Middlesex University. And our library services will be moved into part of the glass-fronted ground floor of a hulking accommodation block, one of several blocks set to be crammed into the historic heart of Hendon on the edge of the only two conservation areas here.
Barnet Council claim they have responded to the community's objections by changing their plan to house students in the accommodation block above the library to housing residents there instead, (most of whom, we've discovered, will be residents who need to be re-housed from nearby homes due to be demolished to make way for more student accommodation blocks). This change to the plans does not begin to address our concerns.
Hendon Library is a unique and cherished part of our past and present, an absolute symbol of our community and a huge part of our civic life. It has belonged to the people since it was built for us almost 100 years ago and should continue to house OUR services. We did not agree to give it away.
How You Can Help
If you or anyone you know in Barnet wants to save the library but hasn't signed this petition yet, it's your last chance to do so this weekend before the council meeting takes place on Monday. We need your support. Thank you!
#HandsOffOurLibrary
OTHER NEWS:
Resident points out key flaws in business case
You can read two powerful letters from local residents Alexander Fischbaum ((Dipl. Kfm, FCCA, MRICS) and Professor Brad Blitz to Barnet councillors who sit on the Strategic Planning Committee here:
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"... Before long, Eileen Colwell's reputation spread ... and her library - "I saw it built from the first brick" - established itself as a showplace. "Visitors," she said with justifiable pride, "always had Hendon on their list."
READ MORE ABOUT EILEEN COLWELL AND HENDON LIBRARY
Have a great weekend!