St Thomas Library will reopen in time for Christmas in its temporary new home at Emmanuel Hall, Emmanuel Road, on Monday 18 December at 10am.
The former library building in Church Road closed on Saturday 21 October after its lease was not renewed.
A new lease was offered at an increased rent, but we decided it was unaffordable.
The pop-up library in the Emmanuel Hall will deliver many popular community services until a new permanent home is found.
These facilities will include book browsing and borrowing, a supply of children’s books, baby weigh facilities, bounce and rhyme group for babies and toddlers, and a community space (for a longer list see editor’s notes below).
We and Libraries Unlimited are still searching for a permanent home for the library.
Anyone who wants to suggest a new location can do so on our Have Your Say webpage.
Book loans will continue to be extended for St Thomas Library customers until the library moves to its new temporary location. Books can also be returned or borrowed at Exeter Library.
Exeter Library will be closed over the festive period from 24 December 24 until Tuesday 2 January for a deep clean.
Councillor Roger Croad, Cabinet Member for Public Health, Communities and Equality, said:
“I’m pleased that St Thomas Library, a vital community resources, has a new home albeit a temporary one and my thanks go to Theatre Alibi whom we will be sharing the building with.
“We are committed to finding a new permanent home for the library and if anybody in the community has any suggestions for a new permanent location, we would love to hear from you through our Have Your Say webpage.”
Councillor Rob Hannaford, the local councillor for Exwick & St Thomas, said:
“It’s really fantastic news that our much loved and valued community hub, St Thomas Library has now found a new temporary home. Indeed, it’s like an early Christmas present for our concerned local residents.
“Maintaining a physical constant presence in the West Exe is very important, as we feared it could be lost. I would encourage local people to please use this facility as much as possible, because footfall and user numbers continue to be very important. Thank you to Devon County Council and Libraries Unlimited for their ongoing support. Also, a huge heart-felt thank you to our wonderful St Thomas Library staff, and volunteers for all their hard work, dedication and forbearance during these challenging times.
“In the New Year, we will all come together to refocus on a new permanent home for our Library.”
St Thomas Library Supervisor Zoe Woodbridge said:
“We’re delighted we’ve found this temporary home so we can continue to serve the vibrant community of St Thomas. We’ve had so many kind words from our loyal customers at this difficult time, and we’re very pleased to be able to get up and running again and see them all in person.”
Libraries Unlimited Chief Executive Alex Kittow said:
“We’re actively continuing to search for a new location with both Devon County Council commissioners and Exeter City Council, and we reiterate our call to any landlords in the community to get in touch if they can offer us a suitable space. We want to continue to reassure people that they have not lost their library and we’re doing all we can to find it a new permanent home. Libraries are the warm, welcoming heart of their communities, and St Thomas is no exception.”
Debbie Bucella, CEO of Theatre Alib said:
“We’re delighted that the lovely team of St Thomas library will be joining us here at Emmanuel Hall. It’s a huge step towards transforming our building into a thriving community space which places children’s imagination and creativity at its core. We can’t wait to collaborate on many exciting and inspiring projects over the coming months.”
If you are interested in helping to provide a library service in St Thomas, whether a temporary pop-up in the short term or a longer-term solution, please fill in the engagement form.
Libraries Unlimited also offers nearly a million digital eBooks, eNewspapers and eMagazines at devonlibraries.org.uk
You can contact the library via phone on 01392 407061 or email at stthomas.library@librariesunlimited.org.uk.
The opening times on December 18 will be 10am to 5pm and thereafter:
| Opening times: | Christmas opening |
| Mon: 9am – 5pm | Mon 25th – Thu 28th Dec – Closed |
| Tues: 9am – 5pm | Fri 29th Dec – Usual Opening Hours |
| Wed: Closed | Sat 30th Dec – Monday 1st Jan – Closed |
| Thursday: 9am – 6pm | Tue 2nd onwards – Usual Opening Hours |
| Friday: 9am – 6pm | |
| Saturday: 9am – 1pm | |
For more information about St Thomas Library go to: St Thomas Library – Devon (devonlibraries.org.uk)
St Thomas Library Facilities and clubs include:
For children:
- All children’s books available
- Book borrowing, returns, reservation collection
- Secret Book Quest
- Bounce & Rhyme, Storytimes
- Children’s colouring
- Craft sessions
- Duplo
- Lego Club
For adults:
Reservation placement and collection, book returns, new books to borrow (We will be building up our adult book collection over the weeks – we need to gauge space and stock availability)
- FREE reservations
- Warm Drinks
- Knitting club
- Tech Cafe
- Room Hire
Libraries in Devon and Torbay are run by Libraries Unlimited, an independent staff and community owned charity on behalf of Devon County Council.
Join up for free by filling in the online form at devonlibraries.org.uk or torbaylibraries.org.uk. Follow Libraries Unlimited on Facebook.
For further information and full contact details please visit: librariesunlimited.org.uk.