SPENDING on new books for libraries in Kirklees will get a £500,000 new year boost.
About £300,000 of council cash will be spent before the end of March, with a further £200,000 extra spending in the next financial year.
Clr John Smithson, Cabinet member responsible for the library service, said: "This extra spending is badly needed.
"Over the years the book fund has been extremely stretched.
"This extra £500,000 is one-off extra investment, and therefore careful consideration has been given as to how it will be spent.
"So it can have an immediate impact there will be additional spending to provide new books at all libraries, and targeted spending to benefit specific groups.
"This will see investment in `large print' books - a heavily used part of the service - and more adult non-fiction books."
In addition, each library - including mobiles - will get a new children's collection of pre-selected storytime and family reading books.
There will be an upgrading of homework collections, a start to replacing cassette talking books with CDs, more adult reading books and collections targeted at teenagers.
Clr Smithson said: "The aim is to invest the money wisely and to make sure all sections of those using the service get extra investment and benefit from the extra funding planned."
The £200,000 extra spending in the next financial year will be centred on renewing book stocks in the four main town centre libraries at Huddersfield, Dewsbury, Cleckheaton and Batley.
