Many Reasons To Save Preston Library - Act Now

Save Preston Library campaigners at action meeting on Saturday

A message from the Save Preston Library Campaign

Brent Council wants to close 50% of libraries in the borough including Preston Library. It will close in June. Once it's gone, it's gone forever. It is likely that the land will be sold to developers and you will have to spend time and money travelling across the borough to access the books and services you pay for with your council tax. Is this fair? First it was education, then disabled centres, then the libraries. What next? Brent Council should be working for you. Don't let them ignore you. Act now!

You can help in many easy ways:

Fill out Brent’s consultation questionnaire at

www.brent.gov.uk/consultation. Paper copies are in the library.

Deadline is 4 MARCH 2011

PLEASE "STRONGLY DISAGREE" WITH COUNCIL PLANS. OTHERWISE IT WILL NOT COUNT.

Come to the Public Meeting: WED 16th FEBRUARY 7.30 - 9.00 pm at Preston Park Primary School, College Road, Wembley, HA9 8RJ.

The more people there, the more the council will take notice.

Sign the online petition (it takes just 30 seconds):

LINK or if this link doesn't work, go to

http://bit.ly/SavePrestonLibraryPetition. (Please sign only one.)

The more signatures, the more councillors will listen. Stand up and be counted.

*****Forward it! Facebook it! Tweet it! ******

Contact your local councillors. They work for you.

Their contact details are posted on http://democracy.brent.gov.uk/ or ask in the library.

Contact your MP. If you live in Brent North, your MP is Barry Gardiner.

Email him at gardinerb@parliament.uk or write to him at The House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA.

Join the campaign. Subscribe to our emails: SavePrestonLibrary-Subscribe@yahoogroups.co.uk;

Join the Facebook Group: http://on.fb.me/fVJNK2.

Publicise the meeting on Wednesday 16th February 7.30pm Preston Park Primary School

If Preston Library is the only library that is accessible to you for whatever reasons, we need to hear from you as soon as possible.

When Preston Library closes for good, the nearest libraries will be Kingsbury Library Plus on Kingsbury High Road, and the Town Hall which will close when the proposed £100 million Civic Centre is built, moving it even further away. Both libraries will only be within walking distance for the very fit and able bodied. For many of us, it will involve transport costs.

Five local primary schools regularly use Preston Library: Preston Park, Byron Court and Wembley Primary as well as children from Uxendon Manor and Mt Stewart. Pupils from Preston Manor and nearby senior schools cram the tables after school to do their homework and revision. They will have to find alternative places much further away from home.

Brent Council wants to close our library. Attend the public meeting! Sign the online petition. 

KEEP OUR LIBRARY LOCAL!

We Love Our Libraries

This video applies to ALL libraries, in London or in country towns...

Primary teacher: Why we must retain the Welsh Harp and Gordon Brown Centres

Magic! The Welsh Harp at dusk

I think it's vital we maintain funding for both Welsh Harp and the Gordon Brown Centre. I've been taking groups to the Gordon Brown Centre for almost 20 years now. Every group has thoroughly loved the experience and learn much - it's simply an outdoor learning centre - learning in a fun way. ! Having taught year six for so many years every Science opportunity is brought out from the rings on tree trunks to the bees pollinating the flowers ( depending on the season) !

The same applies to the  the Welsh Harp. We have taken groups for geography over a number of years and our students attending the Shine programme have also used it in their programme on Saturdays for the past three years. We will also be using it for kayaking this summer as we have done before.

In all both are valuable as outdoor learning centres and it would be criminal for the little green space we have in Brent to be taken from us with the increasing number of flats being built. What lungs will we have left in Brent?

Mark Betts St Joseph's Junior  School,Wembley

What do you want your Green councillor to fight for?

Alan Mathison is standing as Green Party candidate in the Kenton by-election. This Channel 4 Political Slot makes the case for Green councillors.

'Savings' list published for February 15th Executive Meeting

The full list of cuts ('savings') have been published as part of the Budget document for the Brent Council Executive meeting on Tuesday February 15th.

They are reproduced on the blog under PAGES. Click on the image to enlarge.

The list will need careful analysis to assess the impact on residents.

School Crossing Patrols Essential for Safety

I was shocked by the lack of a School Crossing Patrol (lollipop man/woman) when I started work at Park Lane Primary in Wembley in 1996.  Park Lane is an extremely busy route and the school is situated on a sharp bend. Several bus routes use Park Lane and it is a short-cut to Wembley Park from the High Road.Before it was re-named Park Lane the road was called Blind Lane in recognition of the fact that it was hard to see oncoming traffic.  A short, vigorous campaign resulted in the employment of a crossing patrol and there were no accidents thereafter.  Last year a special school assembly said farewell to Tracey who had kept children safe for many years and she was showered with cards, gifts and poems. The children knew how important her job was.


I now hear from parents at the school that her successor may be cut. I can't emphasise enough how this will put children in danger. A better example of the need to protect the most vulnerable from cuts couldn't be found.

Track Library Action Day Events Here

LINK

Libraries Day of Action - local campaigns

The Save Preston Library Campaign have started an e-petition on Brent Council's site. The petition reads:

Keep Preston Library Open We the undersigned petition the council to keep Preston Library open and give full consideration to alternatives to the removal of essential local library services to the Preston ward under the Brent "Library Transformation Project". We oppose the sale or redevelopment of the site that does not include a Brent public library. : We oppose the closure of Preston Library, a cost-efficient local service that is well used by all the local community.

It provides essential facilities for some of our community, particularly senior citizens and those with limited mobility, schoolchildren, and the unemployed and others who may not have access to a computer.

Preston Library service is more accessible and meets the needs of a greater number of local people than would a multimillion-pound mega-library at Wembley Stadium, to which many users would find it difficult to travel.

We demand that Brent Council give adequate time and due consideration to alternatives plans to the closure of Preston Library, including the revision of proposals for the library at the Civic Centre.

We also oppose the sale or disposal of the Preston Library site for any redevelopment that does not include a public library for the use of local citizens.

 To sign the petition follow this link. The campaign needs at least 50 signatories LINK

The campaign is holding an organising meeting at 3pm today at the library and also encouraging as many people as possible to use it and borrow as many books as possible.

There will be a public meeting in  support of the campaign on Wednesday 16th February, 7.30pm Preston Park Primary School

The Cricklewood Campaign has a public meeting on Thursday 10th February 6.30pm at 6.30pm at the library.

The Willesden and Wembley Observer petition to save ALL Brent libraries has now got 71 signatures. More are urgently needed.  SIGN HERE

Finally you can see a map of library protests across the country HERE and follow action in today's Day of Action on Library Closures HERE