Libraries Update – July 2024

90 Years of Central Library!

This summer Central Library celebrated 90 years since its grand opening on 17 July 1934 and, in typical Manchester Libraries’ fashion, there was something for everyone! In addition to our dance and music extravaganza on 16 June, on 17 July we marked the Library’s official birthday with performances from Bowen Education, Colibri Mexican Folkdance and Afrocats, plus a fascinating display of original historic items from the opening of Central Library back in 1934. We were also particularly honoured to have with us a group of residents aged 90+, who obviously had first dibs on Central Library’s birthday cake! It was a brilliant celebration of our Library’s past and present, and we are very much looking forward to seeing what Central Library’s future will look like.

Manchester Central Library Self-Guided Audio Tour

To celebrate Central Library’s 90th birthday, libraries staff have produced a brand-new, Self-Guided Audio Trail across the library. The tour invites members of the public to journey across every floor of the library and discover secrets from its past, as well as explore different pockets of its vibrant present use. There are 17 locations in the library, where QR codes can be scanned to launch the audio. Find out more at our Manchester Libraries blog, or visit Central Library with your smartphone!

Blue Peter Book Club

Following the amazing Blue Peter Book Club Live Event at Central Library on 18 May, Libraries are now promoting the Blue Peter Book Club Badge Trail. Twelve special Blue Peter Book Club badges form a trail around the city at cultural venues, including museums and four of our libraries. Children can win a set of the Book Club books by looking for the letter on each badge. The competition has been designed to bring more people into libraries as libraries are the only the venues where the competition entry forms can be handed in. Children can also join the Blue Peter Book Club and apply for their own Blue Peter Book Badge. Libraries are hosting Book Badge sessions in Libraries as part of the Summer Reading Challenge offer. Find out more on Loads to Do. 

Summer Reading Challenge

This year’s Summer Reading Challenge launched on 1 July with a series of events with school children across the city. Marc Jackson from Marc Makes Comics entertained over 200 children and shared his top cartooning tips with them in Central Library. A further 3,000 children joined in online author sessions promoting the challenge to read six library books during the summer. Libraries’ activity programme is also now in full swing and will run throughout the school holidays.

Councillor Adele Douglas, Deputy Executive Member for Employment, Skills and Leisure tells you more in this video on Facebook! You can also read more at our Manchester Libraries blog.

The Generator Royal Mills

July has been an exciting month for the Generator, as we have opened our second location: Generator Royal Mills, located in Ancoats. The team have spent many hours getting the space ready for use and are looking forward to supporting clients to make use of the varied facilities on offer, including studio photography equipment, a professional podcasting suite, and powerful computers complete with all Adobe Creative Cloud programmes. Various organizations have already made use of the flexible event and meeting space, and our Open Day on the 30 July will be a great opportunity to showcase how our new enterprise hub can help businesses start, grow and develop.

At Generator St Peter’s Square, we held our monthly accountancy clinic, business support drop-in sessions and networking evening. We were also pleased to host the July networking event for ‘Women Leading in Business’, a thriving community in partnership with Alliance Manchester Business School. For more information visit the Generator website.

South Asian Heritage Month Celebration – Withington Library

South Asian Heritage Month celebrations were held at Withington Library, organised by the wonderful Saheli group and library staff to honour South Asian culture and heritage. The event was vibrant and fun, offering attendees a chance to learn about and see traditional South Asian clothing, with many encouraged to wear traditional attire.

NHS staff contributed to the festivities by delivering two informative presentations on cancer and diabetes, providing valuable information and advice sheets for attendees to take home. The arts and crafts activities were as popular as ever, and the event featured delicious South Asian food from Lily’s deli, including tasty samosas and bhajis. The Saheli group also brought desserts and lassi, which were a big hit for their delightful appearance and taste.

Schools Out! Free Summer Activities at Manchester Central Library

With the end of term fast approaching, Central Library is getting ready to host a summer programme full of exciting activities for the whole family. It kicked off with a Sports and Olympics-themed craft session on Manchester Day, 27 July. The programme features lots of free drop-in activities suitable for children of all ages: chess drop-ins, Lego clubs, music and doodle events, board games sessions, and much, much more. Check out LibraryLive to find out more.

Graduation Special Tiny tots and Toddler Time – Forum Library 

Forum Library hosted a very special Storytime, marking the last session before the summer break with a Graduation celebration for the children starting school in September. The event was well attended, with children and their caregivers delighting in stories and rhymes together.

Following some crafting activities, the graduation ceremony preparations began. Each child donned a gown and hat, then walked up to a staff member to receive a certificate, a gift, and applause, followed by a commemorative photo. It was a heart warming moment for both the children and their families, especially for those who had attended these sessions for years. The library staff also found great joy in delivering this memorable event.

BSL Storytime at Central Library

On 22 June Central Library hosted another BSL Storytime session organised in partnership with Manchester Deaf Centre. We are really excited about this budding collaboration and we have great activities in store for the autumn. Stay tuned!

Summer Reading Challenge – North City Library

North City library spent July getting the word out to all of our local schools about the Summer Reading Challenge and how children can join in and take part to keep them reading over the summer! We’ve taken part in assemblies and visited sports days and parents evenings to tell them all about the challenge plus our free activities in libraries this summer.