Plans to transfer Kent’s libraries to a charitable trust are in limbo and will not happen immediately, the county council has announced.

The council has confirmed it still wants to pass over the job of running libraries to a trust as it bids to save money in the face of a continuing public sector spending squeeze.

However, it will not do so until a legal wrangle is resolved that would allow it to incorporate registration services into the package.

The council is the only one in the country to have put its registration services - including registering births and deaths - into the library service.

But legislation would be needed to allow registration services to be outsourced to another organisation.

It is unclear how and when that may happen as it would require the government to pass legislation.

In the meantime, KCC says it will look to save money until the situation is resolved.

While it has not yet set out how those savings could be made, it may raise concerns about opening hours and increased charges. It could also involve smaller libraries being handed to voluntary groups.

KCC carried out a 12-week consultation over the trust plans, which drew responses from 2,143 people and groups.

The consultation ended at the end of April.

One advantage would be that as a charity, a trust would be exempt from paying business rates which currently cost KCC about £500,000 a year.

Mike Hill, KCC’s Conservative cabinet member for community services, said: “We consider that moving to a trust model is the best way to preserve the current level of service. In the meantime we intend to modernise the service, so it can continue to meet the needs of the users.

"This includes finding ways to maximise the use of our library buildings, making greater use of new technology and exploring other ways to generate extra income.”

The service, which includes 99 libraries, needs to save £3.27m between now and 2017.

The registration services include registering births, deaths and marriages.

In common with other councils, KCC has faced a decline in the number of people borrowing books along with the growing popularity of e-readers.