Saved Glasgow library could be turned into community hub

Whiteinch Library, which reopened on Monday after a 22 month closure, faces challenges and is in “need of significant repair.”

What next for the library?

Whiteinch Community Council want to see the use of the Victorian building expanded – which would help secure it’s long term future.

Residents have been fighting to get the much-loved community venue back open and have held ‘read-in’ protests to make their voices heard.

The library would cost an estimated £2 million for repairs and maintenance over 20 years – and £1 million immediately according to freedom of information data obtained by the Save Whiteinch Library group.

‘Challenging position’

Glasgow Life area manager Andrew Olney said: “We have to recognise that the buildings and libraries have reopened but we remain in a challenging position around the financial picture – not just for Whiteinch Library but libraries across the city and Scotland.”

Glasgow Life, the community council and Glasgow City Council are due to meet on Thursday to develop a feasibility plan for a potential community hub.

Mr Olney told the Victoria Park Area Partnership meeting the reopening of the library is “strong and very positive news” and there was a “lot of interest in the community” invested in the community facility.

A report submitted to the meeting said while “the venue is safe to open there is significant repair and refurbishment programme required for it to remain a sustainable public venue in the longer term.”

The community council have come up with the idea of a community hub, which would see other services based in the building alongside book borrowing.

It said: “This will maximise the building use and secure the long term sustainability of the building and provide services which the community has identified through community engagement.”

A Scottish government grant has made the reopening of Whiteinch, the Couper Institute Library, Library @ GoMA, Maryhill Library and Barmulloch library possible.