Dear Rt Hon Karen Bradley MP, I am writing with reference to the release of documents announcing the results of the Lancashire County Council Property and Service Consultation Review. The communities served by the County Council run Library in Whalley in Lancashire, had submitted a response to the consultation review process that was underway this summer by the County Council. Following the submission of this report along with the petition and community feedback, no reference to the community response was produced by Lancashire County Council in their consultation analysis in September 2016. This report announcing the results of the consultation (all 1469 pages of it) failed to reference either submission of our documentation or the petition from the Save Whalley Library campaign in their analysis. Based on the analysis in the report, The county have ratified by the cabinet that the Library in Whalley should be closed at the end of October. The campaign ran through Change.org (https://www.change.org/p/lancashire-county-council-save-whalley-village-library), was well supported and this feedback was used to form our community response. A copy of this is attached. We feel we have not had a fair hearing as a community with what we regard as a major community asset. As we are resubmitting this response to yourself, I hope unlike the Lancashire County Council, you will actually take time to read and consider the content of our response, and will provide the community of Whalley a considered response. The library is a very much used facility in the rural communities of Whalley and surrounding villages. It was also a vital asset to the community following the Boxing day floods, allowing those affected to access vital resources to allow them apply for grant funding and support from local and national agencies. Now our growing community has now had another vital local service removed, affecting those who live and rely on such local support and amenities, which are still offered to most other residents of the Lancashire community in more urban areas of the County. Save Whalley Library welcomes the fact that Geoff Driver, the Leader of the Conservative Group on Lancashire County Council and Ben Wallace MP have referred the outcome of the consultation to you and that you recognise that the public consultation was flawed and that the decision thus requires further scrutiny. We are pleased that you have agreed that ministerial overview is required so as to provide a more balanced and fair view. We felt that there was little point in expending huge effort in preparing a submission if the outcome was predetermined. All that has done is to antagonise the public and convince them that there is little point in taking part in the consultation in the first place. We have faith that you will, unlike Lancashire County Council, look objectively upon our submission to the consultation and look forward to receiving a detailed response which actually takes account of the points raised. Yours sincerely Neil Martin Community Lead for the Save Whalley Library Campaign