Libraries and arts spending cut by almost £400m in eight years

Local authority spending on libraries, museums, and arts has been cut by almost £400m in the last decade, according to new figures.

New analysis by the County Councils Network (CCN) has revealed that shire counties have cut their spending in these services by 30% or £187m since 2011, higher than anywhere else in England.

Metropolitan borough councils have reduced their culture spend by £104m, or 28% since 2011.

London has scaled back by £75m in the same period, whilst non-county unitary authorities have reduced expenditure by £41m in the same timeframe. 

District councils, who do not have responsibility for libraries, but share responsibility for museums and arts support with county councils, reduced their culture spend by £3.1m. 

The total reduction for all councils stands at £390m.

According to CCN, upper-tier county local authorities are now spending on average 65% of their budgets on adult social care and children’s social service alone, which means council leaders have been left with little option but to re-route funding from other ‘highly-valued’ discretionary service areas like arts, libraries, and culture so they can fulfil their care obligations to the elderly and vulnerable.

Library services make up the bulk of these reductions, with county authorities reducing the most  – down by £124m since 2011. 

At the same time, library visits in rural areas have reduced by 34% since 2011. 

Upper-tier county local authorities also record the biggest percentage reduction in arts spending – down by 70% or £22m and reduced expenditure on museums and galleries by £19m.

‘Increasing demand for care, at a time when councils are experiencing significant funding reductions, leaves local authorities between a rock and a hard place on these hugely important but non-care services,’ said CCN vice-chairman and Staffordshire County Council leader, Cllr Philip Atkins.

‘Yet with the unprecedented demand for care services continuing, we have regrettably had to shift funding from other areas to fulfil our statutory duties and more importantly protect the elderly and vulnerable. This trend is happening across all local councils, but is felt more in shire areas, where the average county spends two-thirds of its budget on care services.’