OUR precious Ludlow Library is under threat.

We are told by Shirehall that there is no longer money available for library provision throughout the county in the way we have known it.

The public library is a civic institution with a history going back to Emperor Augustus who in 30BC created two public libraries. In England we started catching up by implementing the 1850 Public Libraries Act leading to 75 cities having their public library by 1877 and by 1900 that number had risen to 300 cities.

There is still a legal responsibility for local authorities to provide a quality library service which our county does not seem to recognise.

I have had a library ticket for close to 80 years; I have acquired knowledge within the library walls that formal education often failed to offer.

Carnegie wrote in the 1800s: "If this nation is to be wise as well as strong we need more new ideas for more wise men reading more good books in more public libraries."

So what are Malcolm Pate and co thinking of? What do they think is their civic duty?

They have found it possible to fund yet another vanity project by handing over the Guildhall rent free to Chester University for seven years, the loss of income to be borne by Shropshire council tax payers; the 45 recruited students, as opposed to the promised 400 students seem an expensive alternative to the Shropshire Library service with, as an example, Ludlow Library’s 3,788 active borrowers of whom 516 are children under 16, who made 94,346 visits, either borrowing a book (79,045 were borrowed) or using a computer (computers were used by the public for 6,247 hours).

And this is only part of the picture; there are 21 regular activity groups not to mention A Harry Potter Night and Bake Off Challenge for Children.

Lest we think it is all about buildings – remember the most important asset of any library goes home at night – the staff!

T.S. Elliott, no mean slouch he, believed that the very existence of libraries affords the best evidence that we may yet have hope for the future of man.

I have had a life-long love affair with the library starting at age four; when I am making a decision about where I live, the first requirement is that the house be within walking distance of the library.