Ex-City man's plan for eco-libraries

A former City worker who became a not-for-profit entrepreneur could be the saviour of some of London's threatened libraries.

Darren Taylor, who runs a computer recycling firm, hopes to take over four Lewisham libraries facing closure under £60million council cuts.

Last month, it was revealed that a third of London's public libraries face the axe as local authorities tighten their belts to meet government economies.

The Evening Standard's campaign to save them is supported by top authors including Martina Cole, Benjamin Zephaniah and Will Self. Tension in Lewisham over the closures saw the town hall invaded last month and riot police called to contain about 400 protesters.

Mr Taylor, 38, is negotiating with the council to run libraries including Sydenham and Crofton Park. He already runs a community library in Deptford which has more than 2,000 books and a café. He said: "We are really confident we can do this and are working with a housing association to put money into one library. "

Mr Taylor believes that all four libraries could be run for £250,000 a year and open six days a week. He also wants new self-service machines and Kindle book readers to make the buildings - rebranded as "eco-libraries" - more attractive to younger readers.

Users will also be able to drop off their old computers so they can be recycled and sold, with the profits ploughed back into books and library running costs. Mr Taylor's firm, Eco Computer Systems, benefited from a grant in October from the Evening Standard Dispossessed Fund. The money has helped more than 30 pensioners to get online.