Bexley Council is set to transform its libraries into dynamic hubs of opportunity with a new five-year strategy, aiming to empower residents through enhanced services and programmes.
The Library Strategy 2025 – 2030, shaped by a nine-week public consultation, envisions libraries as vehicles for local change, supporting health, literacy, creativity, and business growth. The Public Cabinet approved the strategy at its meeting on 10 July 2025, recognising the vital role libraries play in the community. The proposed vision for the strategy is:
Libraries are at the heart of Bexley's growth. In the next five years, they will be dynamic hubs of opportunity for our local communities, where everyone can access the resources, culture, and information they need to thrive. Supporting the delivery of the Bexley Plan, our libraries will empower Bexley's residents to live vibrant, healthy, and resilient lives through bold, transformative services and programmes.
The strategy outlines four key priorities:
- Literacy and Reading: Lifelong and Inclusive
- Culture and Creativity: Connecting Creative People with Places and Resources
- Digital & Economic Improvement: Enabling Access, Information, Business and Learning
- Health and Wellbeing: Connecting Communities and Supportive Networks
Specific programs to support these priorities include a focus on bag books
, reading to children, and collaboration with schools to ensure a consistent reading list to promote literacy. The council also aims to expand the Ambassador's Programme for mental health, and the Together Days initiative in Thamesmead Library in partnership with the NHS to support health and wellbeing.
At the Public Cabinet meeting, several councillors voiced their support for the new strategy.
Councillor Bishop, Cabinet Member for Communities and Housing, expressed his gratitude for the team's effort in developing the strategy and highlighted the importance of libraries as a key asset for the community. He stated that the strategy will allow libraries to reach their full potential and move with the times to meet future requirements. He also noted that Bexley is committed to utilising library spaces and maximising their benefit for residents of all ages.
Councillor Diment, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, declared himself a committed bibliophile
and recognised the evolving role of libraries in the digital age. He celebrated Bexley's approach to repurposing libraries to ensure they remain part of thriving communities, noting a 5% increase in library visits last year.
Councillor Seymour, Cabinet Member for Adults' Services and Health, emphasized the importance of literacy and acknowledged the evolution of library services. He expressed gratitude for the inclusion of bag books
to encourage reading among people with learning disabilities.
Councillor Newton, Cabinet Member for Education, thanked the library team for their work with schools to ensure a consistent reading list. She also appreciated the bag book case study, noting that it allows real inclusivity for young people with SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities).
The council plans to address potential challenges in implementing the Library Strategy 2025-2030, such as funding constraints, by working in partnership with others
to increase opening hours across libraries.
The adoption of the Library Strategy 2025 – 2030 aligns with the council's statutory duty to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service under the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964. The strategy is also inspired by the national Universal Library Offers and supports the council's broader policy frameworks, including the Bexley Plan.