We are investing in modern shelving and furniture and are having all the public areas in the library painted. The current Reference Library will become a Make and Mend Hub providing access to technology and equipment to help people repair, reuse and upcycle items. An accessible, soundproof pod is going to be installed between the Library and the Make and Mend Hub to support private meetings, interviews and quiet study.

We want Grangemouth Library to be a modern, flexible library that meets the needs of all the community. This refurbishment will allow us to do that.

The proposals for the developments were taken from the customer engagement exercise that informed Falkirk Libraries current strategic action plan.

There will be no reduction to current service delivery.

The computers and local history/reference books will move into the main library. As the new furniture will be mobile and easily adaptable, the layout of the main library will be flexible and will be able to hold a wide range of events and activities.

This means the current Reference Library can be refurbished to provide a hireable community space, store an expanded Library of Things stock, and house the Make and Mend Hub.

The Make and Mend Hub is a space that will provide access to equipment to repair, reuse and upcycle everyday items. We want to reduce waste and cost by encouraging people to keep things for longer rather than throwing them away. The Hub will help people develop new skills, enhance wellbeing and contribute to economic development by giving small businesses access to equipment they might otherwise be unable to afford. In other areas, similar facilities have enabled small businesses to produce products and merchandise, generating income and supporting local enterprise.

A Library of Things is what it sounds like – it offers free loans of various items other than books, such as tools, jigsaws, and musical instruments.

We already have a limited Library of Things, but this will allow us to expand our offer to lend library users things like DIY tools, laptops, smart speakers, and blood pressure monitors.

Grangemouth Library will have to close for a short time while it gets painted and the new shelving and furniture are put in place. Once we know the exact dates, we will share that widely.

Our normal activities will continue during this period of change except for the short period when we have to close the library.