A pop-up library has been created in Ulverston’s Market Hall.
The town’s library on King’s Road was forced to close after issues were found with the building’s electrics during routine checks.
Initially, the library service moved to The Coro and was only able to open in line with the venue’s hours, but the move to the Market Hall means that the service will be available for longer.
It now occupies three units in the hall on New Market Street, providing space for more stock for borrowing as well as areas that can be used for community groups, meetings and events.
The facilities in The Coro have been running for several weeks and provide a reception desk, selection of books for borrowing and public access laptops and printers. It will continue to be available.
The new Market Hall units will be open 9am to 5pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and from 9.30am to 1pm Saturday. Both the Ante Room and Market Hall will have library service staff on hand to assist with customer enquiries.
Westmorland and Furness Council is carrying out an appraisal on the King’s Road building to consider all options for providing a permanent, long-term library service in Ulverston.
Options include the full repair and refurbishment of the existing building, relocating or sharing with other facilities in town.
The council said the current pop-up arrangements were temporary and the long-term library solution would involve a far more extensive provision.
Councillor Virginia Taylor, Westmorland and Furness Council’s cabinet member for sustainable communities and localities, said: “The council is working hard to ensure that we can achieve the very best long-term outcome for the town and its library service.
“We are considering all the available options to get the best future for the library and library services in Ulverston – including looking at opportunities to expand and modernise the service and make it even more accessible to more of the local community.
“We recognise there has been much speculation and discussion about Ulverston Library, but whatever happens next will likely require significant investment. It is therefore right and proper that we weigh up all options carefully, taking into account a number of factors, before committing to that level of investment to make sure that it really delivers for Ulverston, not just for now but into the future.”
