Is a move to a new venue the answer to St James’ library’s future?

The area’s residents’ association wants to relocate the under threat library

By Sarah Ward

After two years of toing and froing the bid to transfer St James library in Northampton to a community managed venue has recently fallen down.

NN5 CIC, which was led by Tony Knaggs, threw in the towel after being unable to get the doors open since the pandemic hit and the company now faces being struck off by Companies House after failing to file its accounts.

West Northamptonshire Council is now looking for a new group to take over the facility, and the area’s residents association, which has long been interested in running the library, has put in another bid. But it wants to move the lending facility down the road to the Doddridge Centre, turning it into a community hub where residents can also access training, advice and wellbeing services.

Its bid in 2019 was turned down by the then county council.

Graham Croucher, chair of the residents association said:

“Is this about a library or a building?

“We offered to host it at the Doddridge Centre which we thought was a no-brai…