Our story

 

The idea of Northfields Community Library was born in Spring 2019 in response to an invitation from the London Borough of Ealing to keep libraries open by turning them into community run organisations.

 

Working hard to build a team around this idea, we established a charity in the name of Northfields Community Library and were very pleased to be able to appoint a board of passionate and committed trustees with a range of very helpful experience.

 

We spent much of 2019 recruiting volunteers to help us shape a vision for what we wanted Northfields Community Library to be. Through a series of public consultations and workshops we created a concept of a library that will always have reading and books at its heart, but that will also offer groups and activities that appeal to people across the community.

 

By the end 2019 we had well over 100 volunteers all keen to get the library open and we were thrilled to get the go ahead from London Borough of Ealing to run a new community service. By Spring 2020 the library had been completely renovated to create a welcoming and modern space with the flexibility to support the range of activities we want to offer.

 

Like many organisations, we were knocked off course by Covid-19 and could not open as planned. We took the opportunity to run online sessions that included book clubs and children’s story times and we operated a click and collect service until the public were able to re-enter the library.

 

From April 2022 we started offering group activities in the library and now we hold a range of weekly sessions, one off daytime and evening events and children’s holiday activities. We have recently opened a second-hand bookstall. Details of activities are on the What’s On page of the website and can be found in the library itself.

 

Our library community is growing fast! User numbers between January and April 2023 are almost double those of the same period last year.

 

Our priorities for the coming year are to extend our outreach work, so that we can connect with more people in our community, and to establish a Friends Scheme.

 

Our grant from Ealing Council will gradually reduce over the next few years, and although Ealing Libraries provide the books and the building, we are responsible for all running costs like heating and lighting, and the costs of all the activities we run. We are planning to raise money in a variety of ways – our Friends Scheme is the first. Regular donations give us added security of income, and help to demonstrate that we are locally well supported. Find out more on our Support Us page.

 

If you would like to know more about us, or our business plans for the coming years, please do get in touch.

 

The Northfields Community Library Trustees

June 2023