A council will bring management of its library services back in-house after an independent charity lost the contract due to “serious concerns” raised about the charity’s viability, the council has said.

Staff running Suffolk County Council’s £6m-a-year library service will transition to the direct employment of the council from the start of June, subject to a formal cabinet decision on 18 March, the council said.

The county’s library services have been delivered by the charity Suffolk Libraries IPS across 45 sites since 2012, with the latest contract ending on 31 May this year.

Suffolk Libraries’ almost 400 employees, according to its latest accounts, are set to transfer to the council on 1 June. 

The charity said it was only told the news about the contract 15 minutes before it was announced by the council, so it does not yet know what its future holds. 

But it does receive funding for some roles from the Arts Council England and runs some prison libraries that are funded from other sources. 

Bruce Leeke, chief executive of Suffolk Libraries, said the charity was shocked, disappointed and frustrated by the council’s announcement.

“Suffolk Libraries has done an amazing job of running the library service in Suffolk for 12 and a half years under very challenging circumstances,” Leeke said.

“We have successfully steered the charity to become a recognised pioneer for change within the library sector and we are now regarded as a leading force within the industry. 

“We currently have one of the best-run library services in the country, which has saved millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money, increased the impact and value of libraries and ultimately made Suffolk a better place to live by offering residents access to a groundbreaking and diverse range of services and support.”

Suffolk Libraries recorded an income of £9.9m according to its latest accounts for the year to the end of March 2024.

The library service had an agreed budget of £5.9m in 2023/24, which has been increased to £6.6m for 2024/25.

A formal procurement process was opened last year to secure an external provider for a new six-year contract, with an option to extend for up to a further six years.

The process was abandoned due to difficulties in aligning submissions with the service requirements and budgets, the council said.

“Following the end of the procurement process, Suffolk County Council entered negotiations with Suffolk Libraries (the current provider) to reach agreement on a shorter-term contract,” the council said.

“The intention was to secure the immediate future of the library service from 1 June 2025, while the longer-term future was considered.

“However, Suffolk Libraries were unwilling to accept those terms and proposed different terms which were not acceptable to Suffolk County Council and would have breached procurement law.”

The council said “serious concerns” about the viability of Suffolk Libraries had also surfaced.

Those concerns included the charity’s proposal to reduce opening hours by 30 per cent and issues with the financial stability of the organisation.

“There is also concern about the cost of their head office, including senior managers, which equates to 33 per cent of their annual staffing costs,” the council said.

“Suffolk County Council believes that more of the library budget should be invested in frontline services.”

Leeke said Suffolk Libraries intends to fight the council’s decision and will comment further soon.

“Suffolk County Council’s decision will impact everyone in the county and indeed will send out worrying signals to the nation with regard to the future of libraries within the community,” Leeke said.

“Even if you don’t use libraries, we believe the proposed change will be a very inefficient and costly process, and the cost to the people of Suffolk is even higher.”