A remodelled and refurbished library opens again on Tuesday, with residents encouraged to attend the grand opening event and check out the new facilities.
This modern new venue will bring the library service together with the much-loved Community Support Centre service, previously the Cotmandene Resource Centre. The support centre’s experienced staff will continue to offer advice and guidance to residents, plus access to partner services.
The free grand opening event takes place from 2:00pm to 4:30pm and will see a host of special activities for attendees to enjoy alongside complimentary refreshments. Expect children’s craft events and outdoor games, plus book readings and poetry recitals. Children’s author Peter Bently will be speaking about his new book, Hamster Heroes and a delightful string quartet will set the scene as the library is officially opened by the Deputy Mayor of Bromley, Councillor Keith Onslow.
The redesigned library building creates bespoke areas for support centre and library customers, including a new children’s area, which sits alongside new shared facilities like computer suites, study areas, community hire spaces and accessible customer toilets. Modern consultation rooms also allow for private one-to-one meetings, with general improvements to lighting and heating having also been carried out.
Councillor Yvonne Bear, Executive Councillor for Renewal, Recreation and Housing said: “This is a brilliant new facility that has been carefully designed to accommodate the needs of these important services for the benefit of the local community who use them. I am delighted that we have secured residents access to these services over the long term through delivering an impressive, modern library building for all to enjoy. This is just one step in our wider strategy of improving library facilities across the borough, in recognition of the invaluable role they play in so many residents’ lives, with our libraries issuing more books last year than any other borough.”
Around £11m has been allocated to modernise eleven libraries across the borough through repair works and replacement of end-of-life materials. This is in addition to the major regeneration of West Wickham Library, which is already underway.
The planned works will also cover libraries in Beckenham, Burnt Ash Lane, Chislehurst, Hayes, Mottingham, Orpington, Penge, Petts Wood and Southborough. These works will be done in phases to ensure libraries that are closer together are not closed at the same time where feasible. Further details about each of these will be announced in due course.
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For media enquiries, please contact James George, Public Affairs, on 020 8313 4565 or email james.george@bromley.gov.uk.