The Kingskerswell Against Library Closure group has made the results of its own questionnaire on library closure available to this paper. Out of 162 completed questionnaires, 82 said they would stop using the library service if Kingskerswell library was closed. Kingskerswell residents were not prepared to travel to Newton Abbot or Torquay to use the library. 'This is 50.62 per cent of the replies that definitely say they will not use another library,' said action group chairman Neil Kelly. 'If you apply this percentage to the library membership in Kingskerswell, it means 399 people will be lost to the Devon Library Service. It's shocking that the county doesn't appear to care.' The questionnaire was produced in protest against the questionnaire given out by Devon County Council that failed to ask the question 'Do you want your library to be closed?' and instead gave a lesson in library economics. The Kingskerswell questionnaire was much simpler, consisting of six short questions: 1) Do you use the library regularly? 2) Which service do you use? (Books, computers, CDs, other) 3) How many books do you normally borrow? 4) What do your children / grandchildren use the library for? 5) Do you walk or drive to the library? 6) If the library closes, what will you do? There was also an Any other comments section. 'The library is part of the fibre of the village,' wrote one villager. 'We would rather pay a fee than lose the library.' Other comments: 'I'm simply thrilled with the people of Kingskerswell being so determined to keep the library open and ours'; 'There is no point in improving the facilities at the Newton Abbot library if there are fewer users'; 'A mobile will not do!'; 'It's disgusting if this library is closed,'; 'This closure is short-sighted when the village is expanding'; 'They are not considering the customers or the trouble they are causing,'; 'This should be a people's choice, not a financial one,'; 'Loss of library is not in line with sustainable communities,' and 'The council should invest in the community by building a new library at Kingskerswell.'
