Library campaigners are to embark on a week long 'Essex March for Libraries' this summer.

Protests between Manningtree and Chelmsford will be held in July, with other events from the south and west of Essex joining together in the county town.

The first march will start at 11am at Manningtree Library on Saturday, July 18, and conclude with a public gathering at County Hall on Saturday, July 25.

Dates for other protests across Essex include:

  • Brightlingsea Library, to Colchester Library via Wivenhoe Library on the Sunday, July 19
  • Prettygate and Stanway libraries to Tiptree Library, on the Monday, July 20
  • Kelveldon, Coggeshall to Earl's Colne libraries on Tuesday, July 21
  • Sible Hedingham Library via Halstead Library on Wednesday, July 22
  • Halsted Library to Silver End Library on Thursday, July 23
  • Broomfield Library via Hatfield Peveral Library, on Friday, July 24.

Participants will then move onto Chelmsford city centre, where they will meet at 3pm at the Saracen's Head, High Street, where they will head on to the Essex County Council Headquarters on Saturday, July 25.

"Not enough people are yet aware their libraries remain under threat after the people powered victory last year to prevent a third of our libraries closing imminently," said a SOLE spokesperson. "So we are going across the county to raise awareness that libraries in Essex remain in grave danger.

“Plans to sell off local library buildings, get rid of the staff, and have libraries housed and run by volunteers is a closure plan by stealth. These charity shop libraries will not work.

"Libraries are still desperately needed, far more people go to libraries than attend football matches. Any fall in use in Essex is to be blamed entirely on Essex County Council cuts, who've set our libraries up to fail.

“Opening hours have been massively reduced, and the number of books has gone down by nearly a third, over half a million books gone in the last decade. If a bookshop owner chose to cut stock and opening hours, their business would struggle. But it is exactly what County Hall has done."

"The recently announced investment is no where near enough. For instance the £130,000 promised for new stock is dwarfed by the £2 million it has cut from the book fund.

“People power has already achieved so much, and so we are marching against County Hall's cultural vandalism."