A NUMBER of library staff in North Somerset face losing their jobs as part of sweeping budget cuts across the authority.

The council is slashing £347,000 from its library service as it battles to make savings of £47 million in four years.

The cuts will see ten full-time equivalents – 15 per cent of the entire library service workforce – lose their jobs.

The move will save the authority £107,000 a year in salary costs.

The cash-strapped authority has already introduced self-service terminals at many of the libraries meaning that the work of some staff has dramatically reduced.

There has also been an increase in the number of people choosing to renew and reserve books online.

Volunteers have also been recruited to help run libraries in some villages – including Congresbury.

Local residents stepped in to help after learning their library could close unless volunteers came forward.

A council spokesman said: "These savings proposals were developed in the context that the government has significantly reduced the annual grant to local authorities. Significant elements of the work are expected to be delivered in a different way, through customer self service.

"Consequently the work undertaken by the library assistants will substantially diminish.

"The library service review needs to deliver savings of £347,000 by the end of 2012/13 and the salary savings by deleting these library service posts will contribute towards this savings requirement."

The decision to make the redundancies now has to be signed off by executive members Felicity Baker and Tony Lake.

Following a survey on usage of libraries, some are now set to be open longer, including on Sundays.

The council says it is its intention to continue to provide library services in communities which already receive them, to invest in services where it can and not close libraries.