Fury as Wolverhampton library is left with no heating for almost a week

Cash-strapped Wolverhampton council has yet to repair the dilapidated heating system at Penn Library in Wolverhampton, which conked out last Thursday.

And the chances of repairing the boiler have hit a stumbling block after it emerged the parts needed are no longer available in the UK and need to be imported from Italy.

One library user said visitors and staff at the Coalway Avenue site had been left with little choice but to wear coats, scarves, hats and gloves due to the chilly temperatures.

Balvinder Gill, aged 61, said: "It is absolutely freezing in there. A lot of elderly people and young children use the library and everyone is huddled around in their winter wear. The staff have to be in there all day and they are shivering.

"It is a ridiculous situation. A lot of people rely on the services provided by the library. We should not be expected to be freezing cold while we use the facilities."

Mr Gill, who says he frequents the library to access the internet to look for jobs, added: "I usually book a three hour slot but it go so cold in there last week I gave up and went home early.

"The council needs to get this sorted out as a priority. I asked if they could bring in some temporary heaters to warm the place up a bit but we've been told the council can't even help with that."

The heating system at the site has been dogged with problems for years and is said to regularly break down.

Engineers are said to have advised the authority to replace the system, which is more than 30 years old and no longer runs efficiently.

Councillor Paul Singh, who represents Penn for the Conservatives, said: "This is a completely unacceptable situation for library visitors and I will be speaking to the council to see what can be done.

"There appears to be serious issues with the heating system, and regardless of cost, they need to be sorted out."

Wolverhampton council spokesman Paul Brown said that engineers were currently investigating a fault with the heating at Penn Library.

It is one of a host of libraries around the city to have its opening hours slashed as part of cost cutting measures brought in by the council.

Penn Library is now closed on Mondays and Wednesdays and opens for half a day on Friday.