BIDFORD Library looks set to have escaped closure after Warwickshire County Council supported a plan for villagers to take over the service as a community venture.

More than 70 residents have already volunteered to lend a hand in running the library on Bramley Way if the community venture were to go ahead.

The current library will be closed by March 31 next year and the council has recommended that if funding and delivery arrangements are in place and the bid is amended to meet the required savings target, a community library could be established in Bidford.

Clerk to Bidford Parish Council, Elisabeth Uggerløse, said once costings of the lease were finalised the project would be ready to move ahead. She said: “We are in the spirit of wanting to keep the library open and hopefully they are in the spirit of meeting us half way. Once the costings are sorted out we will give it over to the community. We have volunteers and about three to five trustees.”

Neighbouring villages have also pledged to support the project. “Salford Priors and Wixford have committed funds to the library,” Ms Uggerløse added. “And the library will retain the existing computers with wi-fi and a local volunteer will maintain them.” Under the plan the library would aim to open a minimum of 20 hours a week with a Citizens Advice Bureau outreach operating from the library for a few hours each week.

County councillor Peter Barnes said: “I am happy we know what needs to be done. The outreach will benefit Bidford as 336 people from the village visited the bureau in Stratford last year and the library needs to be used for other things as well.”