Library use is booming in Oxfordshire, according to a survey.

Statistics just released by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy revealed that visits to local libraries rose by 211,536 -- up from 3,744,260 in the year ending March 2003, to 3,955,796 by the end of the same month last year.

The figures revealed that there were 6,430 library visits per 1,000 head of population in Oxfordshire last year, compared with 6,164 visit in the year before that.

They also show that Oxfordshire people are among the best-read in England and Wales, with the seventh highest library visitor figures recorded for any local authority.

The statistics reflect an increase in library visits for the first time in nearly a decade, with 5m more extra visits recorded in the first upturn since the early 1990s.

Visitor numbers had been falling by several million a year since the mid-1990s, and although this has now picked up significantly, book borrowing is still down by 5.5 per cent.

Chairman of the museum, libraries and archives council Mark Wood said: "It's disappointing book borrowing is continuing to fall.

"That's partly a reflection of today's market -- more people today are buying books, rather than borrowing them.

"Nonetheless, libraries need to stock the kinds of books people want to borrow, and they need to manage and procure that stock more efficiently."

County librarian Caroline Taylor said: "We're really pleased that so many more people are visiting Oxfordshire's libraries. We have worked very hard over the past two years to improve all local libraries.

"We have been increasing opening times, especially at evenings and weekends; we've been buying more books and particularly making sure that we have lots of copies of best selling titles.

"Anyone coming into the libraries can use broadband Internet free of charge and this is attracting lots more people, some of whom have never used a public library before.

"We have introduced new services such as DVD and Playstation loans, and our catalogue is available on the web, so books can be ordered or renewed online.

"Most libraries have regular storytimes for children, some have rhyme times for very young children and all libraries encourage children to take part in the summer reading challenge.

"It's great to see that all these improvements mean that more and more people are enjoying Oxfordshire's libraries."