Friends House library to reopen this spring
‘The refurbishment is going well, but it’s such big, complex work we don’t have a confirmed opening date.'
The Friends House library refurbishment is likely to be completed by spring 2022, staff have said. Libby Adams, head of library and archives, said that the refurbishment is well underway, with the floor and painting nearly finished. New furniture will be installed, including a new modern inquiry desk and reading desk.
‘The refurbishment is going well,’ she told the Friend, ‘but it’s such big, complex work we don’t have a confirmed opening date. There’s a lot of major work and then there’s bringing the books back and cleaning them, but we’re hoping that we can welcome people back by Easter 2022.’
Staff had been hoping to start the project for some time before 2020 but it wasn’t until the library was forced to close on site during lockdown, with staff working remotely, that it seemed like the right time. The refurbishment includes removing some larger furniture pieces to make room for future events, and restoring the wooden floor. Around 100 metres of shelving has been removed to create space, with a large amount of books decamped to the basement for storage. Libby Adams said: ‘Many will eventually go back into the reading room, some will go into the basement, and others are being moved from other parts of the reading room to the basement.’
As the library is primarily for reference, rather than a browsing place where people come in off the street, housing much of the collection away from the reading room is standard practice, she said. ‘Most people come in to look at archives in a controlled arrangement with prior appointments. We already had a large collection in the basement and it was always the case that only a small proportion of our collection was in the browsing room in the main library. The library is like an iceberg; with most of what the public doesn’t see in the basement.’
Gil Skidmore, from the Friends Historical Society, but speaking in a personal capacity, said that lack of space is often a problem for libraries. ‘You don’t have to have books on open shelves to browse, if it’s a research library, as long as things can be retrieved with notice. Usually a researcher will write in advance.’
Gil Skidmore urged Friends to share any Quaker archives they have with record offices or libraries. ‘I think in general that Quaker records kept in archives are well-looked after. I think the problem may arise when they are not put into archives: for example, family papers are kept in the family, because people think they are not interesting to anyone other than them. I would always urge Friends to share what they can.’
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