Hertfordshire Performing Arts Library in Welwyn Garden City faces the axe as the county council pushes to withdraw the decades-old service to save money, with a final decision due in July.
Hertfordshire County Council ran a public consultation on the proposed closure from 6 March to 5 May, blaming a substantial funding gap caused by rising costs, increased demand for essential services and the Government’s Fair Funding Review. The library, based at Centrapark on Bessemer Road, supplies specialist sheet music, orchestral sets and vocal scores to community groups across the county. The council’s Cabinet will vote on the withdrawal on 15 July, after a review by the Resources & Performance Cabinet Panel the day before.
The threatened library serves 70 groups from outside Hertfordshire and lends to 66 other libraries around the region. Local music organisations warn that shutting it would force them to hire from commercial publishers at much higher prices. Tanya Barringer, artistic director and leader of Bishop’s Stortford Sinfonia, said: “Without HPAL, hiring music from commercial publishers would become significantly more expensive. This would inevitably lead to fewer concerts, more limited repertoire, or significantly increased costs for participants and audiences.” The sinfonia, Bishop’s Stortford Choral Society and Amici Cantate have jointly written to the council, stating that the library “underpins a wide network of community music-making” and that losing it would have “far-reaching consequences for the cultural and community life of the county”.
If the closure goes ahead, the council intends to redistribute some materials to general libraries and the Hertfordshire Music Service. Other items would be donated, sold or transferred. Campaigners argue the loss would hit hard in Welwyn Garden City, where the facility has been a hub for amateur musicians for decades. A council spokesperson said: “Like councils across the UK, Hertfordshire faces significant financial pressures due to rising costs, increased demand for essential services and the impact of national funding changes.”
The withdrawal would also weaken support for young musicians who get opportunities to perform alongside experienced players through outreach programmes, campaigners say. The final decision now rests with the county council’s Cabinet in July, with opponents vowing to keep up the pressure.
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