Use It or Lose It – A Wake-Up Call on Our Community Spaces
What an unusual start to the week. I arrived in Lancaster on Monday morning and made my way to the office, only to find the way blocked by police due to the discovery of a suspicious package. The Cornerstone was right in the ‘exclusion zone’ as police prepared to carry out a controlled explosion. So I made my way to the library.
As I walked back through town, I noticed that most of the cafes and coffee shops were full. Probably people with the same idea as me – where can I get free Wi-Fi so that I can at least try to get some work done? What surprised me was that the library was virtually empty; a parent and toddler group appeared to be taking up one corner, a handful of staff chatted by the counter, three or four other people milled about or read a newspaper on one of the small tables in there.
As I logged on and started going through emails it struck me how much we – how much I – take community spaces for granted. They’re just sort of there, when I need them and when I don’t, until one day they’re not there at all. My own local library was closed years ago in a round of council cuts. Now it’s an ‘arts centre’ where they show the odd movie or hold an evening of stand-up comedy. I’ve never been. To be honest I hadn’t used it as a library for a number of years either, but when it closed I remember being angry because how can they close LIBRARIES?!
Except the blame really was with me, and others like me. If we don’t use our spaces we can’t complain when they’re taken away, because if we don’t use them then that tells those responsible for the funding of these spaces that they’re not needed.
And it isn’t just libraries – it’s our community centres and our village halls, it’s anywhere and everywhere that offers space to people to come together with no expectation that we’ll spend any money while we’re there. So a small plea – use your community spaces. I’m going to make the effort from now on. Find out what they’re offering and go along. Don’t take them for granted because one day they may close down and by then, if you need it, it’ll be too late.
To find out more about what the Lancaster District has to offer in community spaces, visit the Lancaster Digital Directory.
