A new home delivery library service for people who are unable to get to a library building is to be introduced in Pembrokeshire.

The home service is part of the new mobile library provision approved on Monday by Pembrokeshire County Council’s Cabinet.

Under the new provision, a mobile library service will be retained, focused on delivering to a smaller number of stops but for a longer period at each stop.

It follows a consultation on a review of the mobile library service earlier this year, which prompted more than 660 people to respond.

“These responses were very helpful in determining a way forward,” said Councillor Elwyn Morse, Cabinet Member for Culture.

“The current mobile fleet stops at 181 locations throughout the county and in some cases serves just one user,” he said.

“Our original proposal was to replace our three mobile vehicles with a criteria-led library service, however nearly half of the respondents strongly disagreed with this.

“As a result, we have decided to retain a more focused mobile library service to attend to around 50 stops, as well as introduce an important bespoke service for some of our most vulnerable and housebound customers."

The mobile service and the home delivery service will both be delivered by a single mobile vehicle and is estimated to save around two thirds of the current £100,000 cost of providing a mobile service.

Under the new scheme, people who can’t get to a static library can access library services in a variety of different ways, including using the new home delivery library service.

The new mobile service will operate less frequently (every four weeks rather than every three), and will also operate on Saturdays.