ST HELENS Council is drawing up guidelines to help staff cope with the rising problem of youngsters - some as young as six - who are being dumped alone in libraries by parents.

And the authority is launching a publicity drive to warn parents of the dangers of leaving youngsters unsupervised.

The problem of unsupervised children is not common, but is recognised as a growing national problem by the Library Association. This has led the council to draw up guidelines for staff. The issue seems to be more of a problem in libraries which are in the centre of estates where children are sent 'around the corner' to the library for an hour or two.

Chair of Leisure, Councillor Keith Deakin, says: "First and foremost we are urging parents not to leave young children unsupervised in our libraries. While libraries are welcoming places and children are encouraged to use their facilities, we must stress that children, particularly aged seven and under, must be accompanied by a parent or responsible adult.

"The guidelines are safeguards, not only for the children, but for our staff as well who can be placed in very difficult positions.

"Our libraries host many activities for children, but we want to make it perfectly clear that, where there is an age criteria, it should be adhered to."

The council is worried that problems could occur if a library needs evacuating or if the child is not collected at closing time, plus the possibility of a child being approached by someone unknown to them.

Staff are now being urged to try and contact the parent if possible and point out that young children should not be left alone in libraries. They are also being advised to keep records of incidents.

Added Councillor Deakin: "While we do not want to over-react to the issue we need to identify all possible areas of concern which may indicate children at risk, and have clear guidelines on how to deal with the situation."

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