RESIDENTS in Droitwich and the surrounding villages will have the chance to voice their opinions on the future of mobile libraries and library services at home in a county-wide consultation.

The three-month consultation is due to start this month, and will focus on the size and structure of the service after financial challenges faced by Worcestershire County Council.

Currently there are four mobile libraries operating in the county, and the council is proposing replacing them with one new vehicle, which carries library stock, as well as featuring a small meeting room and wi-fi.

The proposed new service would also use a larger number of volunteers, working with library staff.

A re-modelling programme in the library service has already seen costs cut by £2million since 2011, but the council is hoping to make further reductions, without reducing the service.

Councillor Lucy Hodgson, county council cabinet member for localism and communities, said: "We need to continue to transform our libraries and learning service in order to meet the financial challenge, but at the same time ensuring the customer has access to a quality service that offers value for residents.

"Throughout this planned programme we've looked to be innovative; working with communities and listening to the views of customers. We'll be adopting exactly the same approach during this piece of work and upcoming consultation, details of which will be communicated as soon as they are finalised."

For more information on the consultation, visit worcestershire.gov.uk/libraries.