Photos reveal the progress made in the beloved library, which has been closed since 2022
Work to restore Oldham ’s Old Library is nearing completion. Members of the public entered the building for the first time since its closure in January 2022 last week - albeit in steel-capped boots, helmets and high-vis safety gear.
The multi-million pound refurbishment of the library, which was built in 1883, is part of the council’s redevelopment ambitions for the town centre. The project, first projected to cost around £16m in 2016, with costs likely to have risen significantly since then, will see the three-storey heritage building turned into a ‘mixed use’ cultural hub.
While it is clear from the stripped-back walls, scaffolding and unfinished plaster that there is still plenty of work to be done, many of the library’s traditional features, such as the central atrium and upstairs gallery are being ‘lovingly restored’. Once completed, Oldham Council will take over the process of furnishing and renovating the interior of the library, with hopes that the facilities could be open to the public by Summer 2025.A small group of locals - and the MEN - were given a unique insight into the progress of the renovation works.Visitors will enter through the green off Union Street once the library opens - instead of the grand old stair case, which developers found 'beautiful but not very accessible'.
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