Libraries remain essential free repositories of knowledge. They are also places to learn skills, to experience culture, to get creative, to stay warm, to debate, challenge convention, disagree and to build common ground. When Camden received an endowment from a philanthropist who used the library as a student, the Council decided that the funds should transform the Swiss Cottage Children’s Library into an inclusive and accessible space that imbues the library’s civic purpose.
To understand the needs and aspirations of those who use the space, we worked with hundreds of school children who made little shoe box library maquettes expressing their favourite story experiences. We also spoke to the SEND teachers from Swiss Cottage School who explained the importance of tactile engagement. We listened to young people and we heard from parents and library staff. And we learned about the iconic listed library building, built by Basil Spence sixty years ago.
The new library has 4 areas, each supporting a distinct story experience: acting, writing, hearing and making. We re-instated a storytelling stage, a feature that formed part of Spence’s original plans. A wall with magnetic letters responds to the cravings of young wordsmiths. A listening pod is linked to a refurbished jukebox which has been loaded with audiobooks. A story-making area is kitted out with a big crafting table and a projector as a dedicated space for all the creative workshops that the library is delivering. All is brought together by books and nooks to read them.
And the new teenage library finally creates a dedicated space for children that are growing out of being children.
To minimize our impact on the environment we bought pre-loved furniture, used natural materials, worked with a local community group to create the library signs and we built modularity and mobility into the new furniture so the space can change as people’s needs change.
Swiss Cottage now has a library with story experiences that are as diverse as its people.
