Welshpool library to close for a week - here's why
Welshpool Library is to be closed for a week before re-opening at its new temporary home in the refurbished canalside cottages.
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Powys County Council has announced that the service will be shut between Monday, December 16 and December 23 while the library moves into its temporary premises.
Services are expected to operate from the canalside cottages - across the yard from Y Lanfa - for around six months, while a new glass extension is being built.
The council said that the work will create additional floor space under the canopy area and see the library's heating system upgraded to "make it more efficient".
The work extends the refurbishment undertaken when the library moved into the building in 2020.
Powys County Council said improvements to Y Lanfa are costing "around £1 million" and are part of the £14 million Montgomery Canal Restoration project that secured UK Government funding.
The council has also received £164,000 from the National Lottery's Heritage Fund towards the work on Y Lanfa alongside £140,000 from the Welsh Government towards the work on the canalside cottages.
Welshpool library will be open on December 23 and Christmas Eve before closing for Christmas Day. The library will then reopen on Friday, January 3. While it is situated within the cottages, the library will operate during its usual hours, except for on Mondays when it will close at 5pm until at 6.30pm.
The local authority said that the library will be "offering all its usual services", but the number of books and computers available to browse and use on site will be "limited".
However, the service does boast iPads and Chromebooks that can be loaned out, and readers are also being encouraged to make use of Powys County Council's Order and Collect service.
"I'm glad that we are going to be able to keep our library service on the Y Lanfa site in Welshpool, while work is being carried out to the main building," said Councillor Richard Church, Powys County Council's Cabinet Member for a Safer Powys.
"It's important to maintain some continuity and visitors to the cottages will be able to see the progress being made on the glass extension, which looks very exciting.
"While this is happening, I would encourage readers in Welshpool and elsewhere in Powys to try out our Order and Collect Service. You just need to tell our library staff what kind of book you like, and they will hand-pick some great books for you to get stuck into."
The council also announced that remodelling of the displays in the Powysland Museum will also take place and that the site is now closed to allow work to take place.
For further information on services available at Welshpool Library, while it is in its temporary home, email ylanfa@powys.gov.uk or call: 01938 553001.
