Reading’s all-new library is ready to welcome the public after a £8 million upgrade project.
The new Central Library at the Reading Borough Council offices in Bridge Street is complete with more than 60,000 books and access to helpful IT and study services.
The library has been created after Reading Borough Council successfully bid for £8 million from the previous Conservative government’s levelling up fund.
At ground level, visitors are greeted with a vast repository of books in a spacious new environment, organised as expected into literary categories.
Hiring of books is self-service only from 9am to 10am. People can then either hire books from staff or continue to use the self-service points.
The IT study area allows people to use desktop computers for accessing the internet and printing services.
People can also hire Chromebooks and tablets to give people easy access to technology.
At the corner of the ground floor is the children’s area, ideal for parents and guardians to visit their little ones.
The camelot theme has been replaced with tree fittings and artwork of birds, a fox and other local wildlife.
The centrepiece of the area is the ‘Once Upon a Time’ story time chair.
The council staff leading the tour said the current mayor, councillor Paul Gittings (Labour, Coley), will be using it for school visits and other appropriate engagements.
The book cabinets within the children’s area can be moved for special events.
There is also a teens area with booths for study, bean bags, Reading Festival artwork and shelves stocked with teen literature and comic books.
To the rear half of the ground area is a projector screen which will enable the council to host events.
Upstairs, people can find the library’s dedicated local history section detailing the history of Reading, along with archived newspapers.
Katie Amos, the local studies lead at the library, was sat at her desk, and was one of a handful of staff spotted during the tour.
Towards the rear of the first floor is the Holybrook Room a hireable meeting space and a town centre teaching area for the New Directions adult learning college.
Another service the library has retained is the UK Visas and Immigration Service Point, which is signposted at the ground floor and located upstairs.
Step-free access to the first floor is provided via a public lift which can be found to the right as you enter the civic offices building.
The library opened on Thursday, June 18.
The opening hours are from 9am to 5pm on Mondays and Fridays, 9am to 7pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and 10am to 3pm on Saturdays.
The library will be closed on Wednesdays and Sundays.
