Shirley Library – the latest news

Geoff Flook, SPRA Chairman, reports …

Continued use of the library building

On 4 Feb 2025 SPRA President Trevor Ashby and I were invited to attend a consultation meeting with Council officials (with three Shirley Councillors in attendance), together with a number of members of the Friends of Shirley Library, aimed at establishing the future use of the Library building for community use. 

A meeting of some 20-30 people, was addressed by Simon Bashford Community and Voluntary Sector Manager and Cllr Andy Stranack.  There were a significant number of expressions of interest from organisations wishing to lease the building.  These had been examined and carefully assessed.  Play Place and Asian Resource Centre of Croydon were the two which had scored the highest and these were the Council’s preferred bids.  The summary of these bids- which were presented to the meeting- can be found at the end of this statement.

Participants at the meeting were able to give their feedback on the proposals and asked a number of questions.

A panel of Council officials hope to make a final decision about the ‘winning bid’ by the end of February.  The meeting stressed the importance of the Council having further contact with local community representatives for their input before that point.

Play Place : A Community Library and Learning Centre which will be a modern hub for learning, connection and empowerment.  They will blend traditional library services (books, study spaces, access to digital materials etc) with innovative programmes to broaden the library’s appeal and foster a sense of community ownership.  Possible uses envisaged include a creche/baby care space for parents with young children, a small refreshment area or café, bingo, bridge, crochet clubs, after-school clubs and accommodating the groups that used the building previously should they wish to return (which would involve small rent towards running costs).

Asian Resource Centre of Croydon : A community-led/volunteer supported hub open 7 days a week with core services to include education and learning, community outreach, cultural events and celebrations, creative activities, health and wellbeing and library outreach (maintaining some book collections, reading programmes, work with Council’s Outreach Librarian etc).  Asian Resource Centre of Croydon wishes to retain 30% of the building for its own offices. The remainder will provide spaces for local businesses, start-ups and non-profits, rentable rooms for workshops, events and co-working opportunities, technology access and training to bridge the digital divide.

Bus shelters – good news

Bus shelter replacements imminent.

Here some good news at last from the Council about the replacements for the bus shelters removed a couple of years ago.  Mayor Perry’s bulletin of 24 January provides details of the 99 shelters to be reinstated, with a link to a listing showing locations.  All the Spring Park locations where shelters were removed seem to be on the list.

Transport for London will own and manage the shelters.  The installation programme will run until the end of March. Click on the link below for the full list.

tfl-bus-shelters-list-v2-24-01-25.pdf<https://www.croydon.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2025-01/tfl-bus-shelters-list-v2-24-01-25.pdf>

Patient engagement event 29th January 2025

Members are invited to a patient event at Croydon’s Central Library at Noon (for two hours) on Wednesday 29 January.

Thi is a workshop aimed at enabling us to benefit from the NHS app, learn simple tips for staying healthy this winter from a local GP, and build good, sustainable habits beyond New Year Resolutions

Croydon’s missing bus shelters – news

The Mayor of Croydon has advised as follows …

For the eagle-eyed residents who spotted Transport for London (TfL) contractors surveying bus stops in Croydon, I can confirm it’s positive news. I met with Transport for London (TfL) this week to confirm the rollout of new bus shelters across our borough. It has been a priority for me to restore these for residents and we’ll be sharing more information, including a list of the sites, in the coming weeks.

Christmas Tree Collection

The Croydon Council free real Christmas tree collection service begins next week! Please remove all decorations and lights from your tree and leave it at the front of your property – making sure it does not block the pavement – from Monday 6 January and it will be collected over the next fortnight. You can also take your tree to your nearest household reuse and recycling centre

Errors in SPAN

We apologise for two errors in the December issue, both down to errors by the team (to include the quizmaster)

In the quiz on page 31, reference is made in question 4 to “Edoracum”. This should have been picked up and is, correctly, “Eboracum”.

On page 34, the date of the Clean-Up is given as 14 December and this is the correct date. The date given on page 15 is wrong.

Relevant members of the team will be required to go barefoot and wear sack-cloth for a week.

Library Service update

Croydon Council has asked us to promulgate the following update …

The library service is changing to a model with fewer library buildings which will be open full time, and provision of activities and books in other local venues.

Residents in Shirley can use library services at any other Croydon Library and a free shuttle bus is available to Ashburton Library every Thursday at 10:30am. The bus departs from Wickham Road/Hartland Way, outside the library building and the return journey departs from Ashburton Library at 12pm.

The library service is also partnering with West Wickham and Shirley Baptist Church to host library groups and activities. A collection of books will be available in a designated area at the site in the new year for residents to borrow.

All residents are invited to join a drop in event hosted by the library service and West Wickham and Shirley Baptist Church on December 11th from 2:00-4:30pm.

Activities will include demonstrations of the library digital offer and crafts for adults and children alongside free refreshments. Residents can also join the library, return loaned items and reserve books for collection at a library.

Residents who aren’t able to visit a library can also use the Home Library Service which arranges home delivery of books. To find out more residents can contact homelibraryservice@croydon.gov.uk.

Residents with access to a digital device can also access the library online offer which includes e-books, e-audio books, magazines and newspapers and online learning. This is free with a library card.

Information on all library services can be found on the Council’s webpages here: https://www.croydon.gov.uk/libraries-leisure-and-culture/libraries

The library service can be contacted directly on libraries@croydon.gov.uk

Library staff are now preparing the Shirley Library building to become a community base, continuing to provide a local service. Community organisations or groups interested in delivering services from the library building are invited to apply to communityrelations@croydon.gov.uk.

Applications close on 13th December.  Council staff will then review all of the submissions and work with successful bidders to bring the library building back into use for the community.  More information can be found on the Council’s webpages here: https://www.croydon.gov.uk/community-and-safety/advice-and-funding-community-groups/are-you-interested-running-community-base-heart-our-local-communities-croydon