Swansea Council has confirmed that all library services at the Civic Centre will close on Monday, October 20, with the new Y Storfa facility due to open several weeks later. The exact opening date will be announced soon.
Around 60,000 books and other items are being carefully packed for the move, including 5,000 historic and modern maps, 3,500 microfilm reels, 4,000 picture books, 2,200 graphic novels, and accessible materials such as large‑print, audiobooks, dyslexia‑friendly titles and Braille.
(Image: Swansea Council)
(Image: Swansea Council)
New facilities at Y Storfa
The new Central Library will feature a glass‑fronted children’s library with thousands of books, a sensory wall, interactive games, and a retro gaming area for older children. Board games for families and adults will also be available.
Visitors will be able to access physical newspapers such as the South Wales Evening Post, bound archives, and hundreds of digital titles via the library’s Press Reader and Borrowbox services. Historic newspapers will also be available online through subscription resources and the National Library of Wales.
Temporary arrangements
Swansea’s 16 community libraries will remain open during the transition, although public PCs will be unavailable on October 22 and 23 due to maintenance. Borrowed items can be returned to branch libraries, and online services will remain available 24/7.
Part of city centre regeneration
Y Storfa is part of Swansea Council’s £1bn regeneration programme and will pave the way for the redevelopment of the Civic Centre site.
Cllr Elliott King, cabinet member for culture, Swansea Council, said: “Y Storfa will give residents a modern, welcoming Central Library at the heart of the city centre. It’s good to see that preparations for the move are well underway.”
Cllr Rob Stewart, leader of Swansea Council, said: “Y Storfa will create a central hub where people can learn, access support and come together. It’ll create footfall for city centre businesses and will further boost Swansea’s regeneration.”
More than a library
Alongside the Central Library, Y Storfa will also house the West Glamorgan Archive Service, Housing Options and Housing Services, the council’s contact centre, lifelong learning, and revenue and benefits teams.
Non‑council tenants will include Careers Wales, Citizens Advice Neath Port Talbot, and Swansea University’s South Wales Miners’ Library.
The project has been supported by the Welsh Government’s Transforming Towns programme.
