IMPROVEMENTS have been made to a Leicester library as part of a £75,000 investment by the city council, which is determined to “keep libraries at the heart of the community.”
New flooring, energy-efficient LED lights, a new reception area and free-standing shelving units are among the changes made at Knighton Library, which sits in Clarendon Park Road, as part of Leicester City Council’s Transforming Neighbourhood Services programme.
There are also new public computer work stations, plus desk space for customers to plug in their own devices.
In addition, the library has been extensively decorated inside, with a partition taken out to open up the space and make it more flexible for community use.
The refurbishment work has been carried out over a 14-week period, since October 11 2021, with the library reopening to customers with its new look on Monday (Jan 17).
Later in the spring, a new trial self-access system will be launched, giving customers access to the library even when staff are not there, so that they can borrow books and use the computers and study desks outside of the library’s normal opening hours. Knighton and Evington libraries will be the first in the city to try out this new self-access system, with Evington library also due to launch a trial this spring.
Cllr Kirk Master, assistant city mayor for neighbourhoods, said: “We know that library services are something that people really value and see as an integral part of their neighbourhoods. That’s why we’ve been determined to think innovatively so that we can keep libraries at the heart of our communities.
“We listened to people in Knighton who told us in a consultation that they wanted to see investment in their local library.
“Providing out-of-hours access to libraries, transforming our community buildings and investing in refurbishment programmes are just some of the ways in which we are ensuring that our neighbourhood services are fit for the future. I hope these improvements in Knighton will mean even more people join Leicester city libraries – it’s free and easy to join!”
Find out more about Leicester’s libraries, visit: www.leicester.gov.uk/libraries
