By Sophie Swain Stand Up For Southport
The Cornerstone Library in Churchtown in Southport is celebrating its first birthday this month.
The library, which is located at The Cornerstone Methodist Church on Marshside Road, is run entirely by volunteers and operated by the North Meols Library Association.
It was opened following a 10-year campaign to reopen a library in the northern half of Southport as Churchtown Library was among seven in Sefton which were closed during Sefton Council cuts in 2013.
Trustee, Kim Ardron said: “It has been a very long road.
“It took 10 years to get to the opening, it’s a bit of a surprise to get here.
“It’s been amazing and it’s onwards and upwards now.”
The new library was opened on Saturday 28th October last year by David Lonsdale, former Heartbeat TV star.
It serves the communities of Banks, Churchtown, Crossens, High Park, Marshside and beyond.
Kim said: “It’s still early days, because of where we’re located some people don’t know how to get here.
“As we grow, I know we can go from strength to strength.”
The library has two computers for public use, with printing available at a small fee. It is also home to over 2,000 books.
The community can sign up for a free membership, meaning they can take up to six books home.
In the next few weeks the group plans to launch a new story time and rhyme session for children of pre-school age, which will run once a week.
As Cornerstone is run by volunteers, the hub frequently hosts fundraising events to help support the community library. The most recent event was a bingo, tea and cake afternoon, with tickets costing £10, Kim said it was ‘very successful.’
She said: “We always welcome donations of books and money. As we are a charity, the biggest thing is fundraising for our running costs.
“People can support us by just coming in!
“We’re hoping to do more fundraising events such as quiz nights and maybe even a lottery.
“We are always open to new ideas too.”
The Cornerstone Library is open Tuesday 10am-1pm, Wednesday 10am – 4pm, Thursday 1pm – 4pm and Saturday 10am – 1pm.
You can find out more via their Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/CornerstoneLibraryChurchtown
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