Local Councillor Alan Salter says:

“Owing to the new government’s stringent spending cuts, Sutton Council is being forced to find budget reductions of up to 25% in its leisure, recreation, sports, library and parks services (this amounts to about £900,000). However, efficiency savings can be made by integrating similar or complementary services in one site, reducing the huge maintenance costs, but at the same time improving local services to local residents”.

Cllr. Hamish Pollock says:

“Sutton Council is already committed to re-building and modernising the Westcroft Leisure Centre here in Carshalton, and financial reserves have been set aside for this. It is also being proposed that a new Carshalton Library should be provided as part of this rebuild, in much the same way that new local libraries have been provided at the new Phoenix Centre at Roundshaw and at the brand new Life Centre in Sutton. The existing Carshalton library building (which is a “Listed” Building) would be then sold to realise funds for the new service”.

Cllr. Jill Whitehead says:

“The library would be situated in a larger space on the ground floor of the new Westcroft Leisure Centre, off the reception area. It would have the benefit of on-site parking, a café, and public-use Internet PCs. The library would be self-service allowing it to be open for much longer hours each day – for example the Sutton Life Centre library is currently open weekdays until 7pm and will shortly be extending its hours to 9.30pm, with Sunday opening hours of 10am-5pm.”

We would like residents to be part of the planning process for the new combined Library and Leisure Centre, and welcome your ideas about what should be included.