A VISION of how Southampton's libraries could be reshaped to meet readers' needs in the 21st century has been unveiled by city leisure chiefs.

Southampton's Central Library could be open 24 hours a day with all of the city's other libraries open at least 100 hours a week by 2015 if the radical plans are given the eventual green light.

Within a decade, the city's library collection would be housed in a single "iconic" building offering a range of community, learning and leisure services.

Four large-scale "district" libraries would also be created - possibly based in converted supermarkets.

They would offer a range of services and include a creche, cafes, lockers, comfort zones, cyber centres and media hire shops.

Mobile libraries offering a range of multi-media services would also be in place, giving residents access to a full range of library services - no matter where they lived in the city.

The radical blueprint for the city's new-look library service is due to be discussed in greater detail by Southampton's ruling Liberal Democrat cabinet early next year.

The vision would see libraries based less on the printed word but offering access to a wide range of information sources such as CDs, videos and computers.

Libraries would also change from being places where people hired books to community resources where residents could obtain qualifications in information technology.

City leisure bosses hope that libraries will eventually become a "virtual world" which would link communities in the city via computers - both to each other and to other countries.

The blueprint is now set to go out for wider consultation before it comes back to the city council's Cabinet.