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# Suffolk library dispute: Charity says council misrepresenting management costs
- URL: https://www.ipswich.co.uk/suffolk-library-dispute-charity-says-council-misrepresenting-management-costs/
- Published: 2025-03-14T13:57:06.000Z
- Updated: 2026-03-16T15:18:21.000Z
- Description: Suffolk Libraries claims its back office costs are 21.4% of the total budget—not 33% as claimed by Suffolk County Council, whose CEO urges councillors not to "make a big decision based on flawed figures."
- Author: Oliver Rouane-Williams
- Tags: News, Public Libraries & Cultural Services, Councils, #article, #story-suffolk-libraries-vs-scc, Suffolk Libraries, Suffolk County Council, #Import 2026-03-16 14:45

**Why it matters:** Suffolk County Council has proposed taking the library service back in-house after 12 and a half years of being run by Suffolk Libraries, a move the charity says is based on misrepresented figures. The decision has been met with widespread public criticism:

- A survey by this publication revealed that 76% were not in favour of the decision, with just 14% in favour of it
- A [petition against the takeover](https://www.change.org/p/stop-suffolk-county-council-wrecking-our-fabulous-local-libraries?ref=ipswich.co.uk) is approaching 21,000 signatures

![Bruce Leeke and Sylvia Knights of Suffolk Libraries](https://storage.ghost.io/c/29/1e/291e4b7f-e551-4458-b546-61963954b22f/content/images/2026/03/1741960525-suffolk-libraries-leadership-collage-1.png)

Bruce Leeke and Sylvia Knights of Suffolk Libraries

**By the numbers:** Suffolk Libraries has an annual charitable turnover of nearly £10m, of which:

- £6.8m comes from the council contract
- Nearly £3m is generated by Suffolk Libraries itself
- The charity says this extra income "pays for nearly all back office and management costs"

**What they're saying:** "We stand by our figures which prove 21.4% of our total annual salary budget is spent on back office/management, including functions like the stock team, HR and IT," said Bruce Leeke, CEO of [Suffolk Libraries](https://www.ipswich.co.uk/tag/suffolk-libraries/).

"The figure is only around 7% for senior management, a ratio that seems perfectly reasonable for a charity responsible for running 45 libraries, three mobile libraries and 13 prison libraries in addition to many other value adding contracts."

**The other side:** The county council has claimed that 33% of Suffolk Libraries staffing costs are spent on back office and management, a figure the charity disputes as being calculated incorrectly.

**What's next:** Suffolk Libraries met with the council this week to present a new proposal that would potentially allow the council to access additional funding to maintain the current service for the next two years.

**For context:** The charity says it has "successfully run" the county's 45 libraries for over 12 years and is "heralded within the industry as an example of best practice."

**The bottom line:** Sylvia Knights, Chair of Suffolk Libraries, has recorded a video appealing to Suffolk County Council decision makers to reconsider and "get back round the negotiating table."

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