The Swindon Central Library is, as its name suggest, located in the centre of Swindon town.  It was opened in October 2008 and is a fantastic resource for Swindon.  Of course it has books! but also computers, a Visitor Information Centre and shop, a cafe and all sorts of activities such as story time for children, book launches, regular displays and exhibitions and much more.  So very different from the days of our childhood when all was silent, or at the very worst, a quiet whisper could be heard.

Perhaps the area we know best is the fabulous Local Studies section on the second floor.  The staff there are quite exceptional - their knowledge and helpfulness has been gratefully received by so many.  But they have gone beyond what might be expected of them and their dedication and passion for 'all things Swindon' means they have amassed a huge collection of, well, anything to do with Swindon.  There are regular family history research help sessions and their resources include all the usual things you might expect like parish registers, census returns, electoral rolls and newspapers.  But there is so much more - they have an extensive collection of local maps going back in time (so helpful for family history research), school registers, advertising leaflets, newsletters from local companies and communities, directories, even a collection of CDs and records from local musicians.  Not just old, but new as well because all of it is a record of the life of Swindon.  As for their photograph collection, it is very impressive - in both size and quality - and many of their photographs are available on Flickr.com.

The three photographs of the construction were taken by our daughter - she was at that time a member of the Swerve Dance Company who were based at Swindon Dance in the town hall adjacent to the library site.