GRACE HILL LIBRARY : YOUR LAST CHANCE TO PUT YOUR VIEW
The consultation on what to do with library provision in Folkestone following the closure due to the disrepair of Grace Hill library concludes at just before midnight on 11 September. This is inconveniently the actual date of the next Go Folkestone meeting , which should include a discussion on the sports’ centre , the recycling fair we are publicising in town on 14th September ( WHICH NEEDS VOLUNTEERS to info@gofolkestone.org.uk ) and progress on projects .
So what the Committee decided to do on 5th September was remind members one more time of their chance to respond , whilst putting out a discussion sheet prior to a Committee response to the consultation . That response will be hammered out Monday and Tuesday . We’ll add any strong feeling from the general meeting , even if we have to put it in on 10.00pm on 11 September . Incidentally I , Richard Wallace , will be putting a purely personal response which is different from the following , just as other committee members, such as Tony Hill and Marie Helene Hunter already have . However we all support the Creative Folkestone approach provided it is feasible.
Please visit www.kent.gov.uk/folkestonelibrary to complete the online questionnaire or pick up a questionnaire from a local library . YOU HAVE 3 DAYS ALTHOUGH YOU CAN LOBBY LOCAL COUNCILLORS FOR YEARS!
Discussion :
Go Folkestone supports the efforts of Creative Folkestone, the charitable organisation associated with Sir Roger De Haan and the inspiring revival of the Old High Street, and parts of Tontine Street, which is now cooperating with others including Folkestone and Hythe District Council and Folkestone Town Council to try to reopen the Grace Hill building. However KCC, the responsible body for libraries has a massive budget deficit , perhaps £80 million estimated in 2025-26 , often due to other problems such as burgeoning adult social care provision . FHDC also has a big deficit, and Creative Folkestone, a charity, is being fairly cautious and hard-headed about not for profit uses, according to the highest sources.
Kent County Council is the library owner and responsible body, and many locals would say the cause of the problem. The GF committee noted a letter from a former head librarian, which we will print , which lambasted KCC for neglecting the building . The Committee does feel that the current Conservative County Council deserves some censure for having neglected the 1887 listed building for many years. Experienced members who are civil engineers , have questioned whether, for example , a relatively cheap if ugly scaffolded protective canopy should not have been provided years ago, even if the roof couldn’t be comprehensively repaired all at once ?
However we all know that library cut-backs are a national problem and not down to a few individuals at KCC . A certain cynicism about the ability of any political party to solve the problem is legitimate. Councils are cash-strapped everywhere, and several members felt that adult social care or youth facilities , which KCC also cover , were a higher priority than libraries.
It is worth noting that under the Museums and Library Act , the Labour Government itself is obliged to ensure a decent library provision across the country . It is therefore worth canvassing the MP , Tony Vaughan , and national bodies for the money necessary , perhaps emphasising the potential of the listed building . At bottom , a town the size of Folkestone will not be legally able to lose its library . The issue of historic library covenants is therefore irrelevant.
KCC suggests selling the Victorian building and relocating the library to what would be a new, and undoubtedly a more central location in Sandgate Road. It proposes taking forward “work with Folkestone and Hythe District Council on moving the Library and registration service to FOLCA/Debenhams on the high street.” (?)
Most GF members in discussion and responses seemed to reject selling Grace Hill and to support the broad CF scheme to bring the traditional library back to the ground floor of the existing building , which is not in a bad physical state, with some exciting gallery use, supported by arts grants , on the upper floors. Even upstairs, where there has been water ingress through the complex roof structure , the repairs appear less than first estimated . The Grace Hill Library was acknowledged as the ninth most used library of 99 in Kent before its closure , which is reasonably successful even for a town of 50k , given the other libraries at Cheriton etc. But given the size of Folkestone it could be assumed that any relocated library would be this popular unless very isolated . Members were nervous that the listed 1887 building would not be respected or safe if it was sold off for possible conversion to flats . Given the conversion of Royal Victoria Hospital to flats the latter is feasible . Although the library location was no longer in the commercial ‘peak’ , it was close enough to buses , the centre etc and with a facelift and surrounded by creative businesses on three floors would be great. But a minority of the ‘focus groups’ did feel that Sandgate Road , the ‘’high street’’, if used as a location , would strengthen both the Library and the high street, which is looking in need of all the help it can get .
It is very important to note that the Green-led DISTRICT Council , despite the investigative work into Folca mentioned , rejects moving the Library to Folca, as does the Labour Party . It is very attracted as Go Folkestone is , to the Creative Folkestone scheme . It also believes that it will need all the Folca space for council offices and a modest central surgery which it proposes as part of its own big scheme to redevelop the Civic Centre site in Castle Hill Avenue . Although there are no plans for the latter it is assumed to be mainly heading for a residential redevelopment.
KCC is carrying out a consultation on the way forward which has several options . Some are largely dismissed even by Kent County Council and did not seem popular with us.
Go Folkestone , over several committee and general meetings, plus on-line responses does not seem to like the ideas of moving the library to any of the suggested existing Kent County Council buildings , although this might of course be relatively cheap . They are all viewed as relatively ugly and peripheral.
The current temporary library at 5-7 Grace Hill is a poor and very secondary building , and acknowledged to be too small , though a possible continuing heritage hub . The footfall is poor. Of course it is nearly opposite Grace Hill Library which is undeniably in a secondary location nowadays . But the listed 1887 building has presence and goodwill which the rest of Grace Hill lacks. This would help its footfall if reopened. I think , subject to committee , that there was some nervousness about putting money into anything except the Library building itself , since Grace Hill is now very secondary and we want the high street to have most of the town centre magnets in a commercial environment that is now diminished by internet competition .
The Cube or Kent Adult Education at the top of Tontine Street is another possibility according to KCC . This is multi-storey, uphill , and slightly further from the real town centre . It was built as a private office block in a poor location and has never been popular. It was dismissed.
Disposal of these two buildings for residential conversion or site redevelopment , absorbing uses into Grace Hill , or even one into the other , might be more financially sensible that trying to use them for a library.
A third option is the KCC Early Years Round House at the bottom of Dover Road . This is further out still , though a nicer building . If it were used then presumably Wood Avenue would close and be sold off . The location wasn’t really discussed but it seems more appropriate to a revival of Surestart or similar children’s facilities because it is low rise , has a little space and is convenient for East Folkestone. If The Cube was too peripheral for members , this would also be.
Cheriton House offices in Cheriton High Street are 3 miles away , which seems prohibitive , but were not discussed at meetings .
Kent County Council has implied that the CF scheme is too vague and potentially expensive. Repairs to this one building have been costed at £2.9 million by KCC. Admittedly this has been decried as an estimate to encourage disposal . The Labour , Green and Lib Dem parties have attacked this view . But no detailed , costed CF scheme has ever been released . Go Folkestone is a non-political organisation and therefore should respect the fact that the CF scheme is unproven as yet. Two Go Folkestone committee members talked to the top people at CF earlier in the year . It was clear that for any scheme to work there would have to be a high proportion of genuine, rent-paying creative businesses. And therefore a lower proportion than some people hope of non-commercial , community uses. It appears Go Folkestone members accept this and still want the building to remain a library , gallery , studio centre etc perhaps with bodies such as Screen South moving in. Tontine Street might then be freed up for more residential use?
This subject is a political football and we must not join the party-biased . There is a real argument for concentrating attractions such as the Library in a convenient location such as Sandgate Road which should not be ridiculed and should remain a Plan B . However in conclusion GF does put itself behind the renovation of Grace Hill Library into a ground floor library , a group of viable creative businesses and a café , renting business and studio space which would be enhanced by the building’s character , plus as much community use as can be viable .
The business model of Creative Folkestone, as most readers know, is to revive the Old Town with creative businesses and studios in the Old High Street and elsewhere which are rented out. It may well be that some of these or similar exciting businesses bring employment into a repaired and redecorated High Victorian first floor and perhaps basement which to some extent covers its costs with the rents . CF will probably take the building on and lease out the library floor to the responsible body , Kent County Council to cover maintenance . An annual rent would hopefully be manageable for Kent. Folkestone Town Hall has the local museum and parochial art gallery. But who knows what themed art gallery might emerge in Grace Hill . Given the record of Folkestone Triennial and the involvement of Sir Roger and Alistair Upton , a modern street art gallery might be mooted .
Richard Wallace , following several group discussions . [ Not my personal view] .