New life will be breathed into Whitchurch Library in a £200,000 scheme which would involve improving access to the building and revamping its facilities.
The library on High Street will see improvements made to its interior and the entrance will be moved from the side to the front of the building. The scheme has been developed following concerns from visitors who have had difficulty in accessing the building.
Cash has been earmarked as part of Shropshire Council’s capital programme which runs until 2014/15.
Doris Ankers, Whitchurch town councillor, praised the plan to revamp the library and thinks it will be money well spent.
“The library is a useful service and any improvements made to it will be of benefit to the town,” she said. “It is great when you see toddlers in there reading books and it is a lot better for them to be doing that than sat at home watching television.
“The current side access to the library is unsuitable for mothers and moving it to the front of the building will be very beneficial to people using it.”
James Anthony-Edwards, head of libraries and information, said: “Shropshire Council Library Services wants to provide the best service to suit the needs of our residents.
“Our customers who use Whitchurch Library told us that the current entrance, which is off an alleyway, was not ideal.
“After listening to our customers, we are investing £200,000 of capital funding to relocate the entrance to face on to the High Street, which will make it easier and safer to access.
“This is good news for residents of Whitchurch and the surrounding area and we hope this will encourage more people to visit our library to use its great range of facilities.”
The library is home to the Victorian clock that was originally in the Whitchurch and Ellesmere Bank – the workplace of the illustrator Randolph Caldecott, who worked there as a young man before he changed careers and found fame in London and the USA.
Whitchurch Library regularly hosts a wide variety of activities including author visits, benefits surgeries, Bookstart Rhymetime for babies and toddlers, story and activity sessions for children and a reading group.
By James Pugh
