‘We want to let visitors know early so they can plan ahead’Manchester Central Library (Image: Manchester Evening News)

The iconic Central Library in Manchester city centre will close for three weeks in August, Manchester city council has announced.

The council has confirmed the library off St Peter’s Square will be shut from August 2 to August 24. It’s for the installation of Wi-Fi and computer network upgrades.

The Town Hall extension will also close over the same period.

“Central Library will be closed for three weeks from 2 to 24 August,” said the council on its website. “We are upgrading the Wi-Fi and computer network to make things faster and better.”

The council stressed all 21 other local libraries in Manchester would remain open during the period of closure.

Online library services will continue as normal, with staff levels at nine other libraries set to be increased – Avenue Library; Chorlton Library; Didsbury Library; Gorton Library; Longsight Library; Newton Heath Library; North City Library and Withington Library.

It will close for three weeks in August(Image: Getty Images)

Staff, however, will still be situated at Central Library during the closure.

The council added: “Even though the building is closed, staff will be at the Central Library entrances to help you find another library, accept books being returned, provide visitor information and suggest places to visit, meet friends or grab a coffee nearby.”

Town hall bosses said August was chosen deliberately.

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“We know Central Library is a staple place for Mancunians to work, study, and have fun,” said the council. “So we’ve chosen to do the upgrade in August. Schools and universities will be on break, and many workers will be away.

“We want to let visitors know early so they can plan ahead. We will help people explore fresh alternatives for all their library needs. We’ll be posting regular updates here on the website. You can also follow us on our social media, and sign up for our library e-bulletins.”

The Reading Room(Image: Sale and Altrincham Advertiser)

Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald laid the foundation stone of the Central Library building on May 6, 1930. Four years later, the library officially opened on July 17, 1934. The library was opened by King George V.

The library is famous for its vast domed Reading Room on the first floor.

Councillor Garry Bridges, Deputy Leader of Manchester City Council, said: “We need to carry out important work to upgrade the network systems which were implemented during the major refurbishment works in 2013. Currently there is patchy network coverage in critical areas across the buildings, and the upgrade will give us a flexible ICT network that is more fitting to modern ways of working and our digital strategy goals.

“We are sorry for the inconvenience that these temporary closures may cause but we are making alternative plans for the services during this time, and we hope that people will understand that the end point of this critical work will be beneficial to everyone who uses the buildings for years to come.”

Councillor John Hacking, Executive Member for Skills, Employment and Leisure added: “Although there is never a good time to shut Manchester Central Library, we cannot move forward in updating the network without this necessary closure. I can assure people that we will be working at pace to bring a better and faster Wi-Fi provision for our customers when we reopen.”

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