Forgetful book borrowers may soon have less to worry about when using Kirklees Council library services.
As part of its second review of libraries across the borough, the council has revealed it is considering scrapping all fines for late returns.
If it goes ahead Kirklees would become one of the first councils in the country to no longer charge library fines.
At the moment, only children’s book loans avoid the late fees.
All other users are fined 15p per day and after a certain amount of time of not responding they may be issued with an invoice for the cost of the book.
The council has revealed it makes about £18,000 per year from fining people who fail to return their library books on time.
But it says a significant proportion of that – which it has not revealed – is spent on the costs of handling cash, for instance secure collections and bank fees.
A report on the matter, due to be considered by senior councillors next week, says: “Library fines have been a long standing arrangement in libraries but they potentially disproportionately impact on those who are most vulnerable, financially or as a result of cognitive disability or mental ill health.
“The fear of a library fine may be a deterrent to using the service for some people from these groups. “
The report also highlights that dealing with the cash from fines complicates the use of volunteers in libraries – something which is increasingly common as the professional staff levels drop.
The news comes in the same week that an Irish library revealed one of its books that had been missing for 53 years had been returned, theoretically notching a £870 late fee fine in the process.
Last Tuesday, staff at the Thurles Library in Tipperary were shocked when a member of the public returned a copy of ‘Father Theobald Matthew’ by Reverend Patrick Rogers, that had been overdue since May 30, 1965 – making it 19,433 days overdue.
Staff at the library were unaware that the book, which was first published in 1943, was on loan as it had been checked out under the old card-based system, which was digitised in the early 2000s.
The book was discovered by a member of the public while they were cleaning out a house and resulted in a €971.65 fine in late fees.
The library joked on Twitter that it would round the fine down to €950 but is now thought to have waived the charge.
Kirklees Council is nearing the end of its second libraries review in three years.
Amid huge cuts to its budgets the library service is being targeted for a further £1.7m in cuts, which will result in the service having had its finances slashed from £5.7m to £2.2m in just a few years.
