TOURIST information will be available at Marlborough library from the beginning of April. After its controversial cost-cutting decision to close the town's Tourist Information centre last October, Kennet District Council has been exploring how the service can be resumed.

Town councillors, angry at what they believed was a lack of consultation over the TIC closure, have also been exploring how the service could run in future.

A group of councillors have come up with a proposal to put a new TIC together with Town Council offices in the Town Hall basement.

The town council suggestion would include the loss of the public toilets and has come in for criticism from traders and market stall operators.

There is a long term proposal that the Local Information Point in the library could double up as the tourist information centre. But the short term solution Kennet has agreed with the county library and museum service is to have a full- time tourism officer working from the LIP.

The council said the new service will only be available during library opening hours.

The interactive computer tourist facility at the former TIC in the George Lane car park will continue in use as part of the first phase. Next year the district and county councils have agreed the second phase will involve introducing an information and tourism service at the library.

Marlborough county councillor Margaret Boulton said she is not convinced the TIC could be amalgamated with the LIP without major work to the listed library building.