Falkirk area libraries to reopen in phases - here's what you need to know

Falkirk Community Trust (FCT) has announced Falkirk Library will return to business as of Monday, October 12, with seven others to follow throughout the rest of October and the beginning of November.

The opening hours for Falkirk Library will be 11am-3pm from Monday to Friday and 11am-2pm on Saturdays. Details will follow for the other libraries.

In preparation for full reopening, teams have been working hard to put in place a range of new measures to keep customers and staff safe, with the region’s libraries having obtained Visit Scotland’s ‘Good to Go’ accreditation to further assure the public all venues are safe to visit amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Grangemouth Library is set to welcome back bookworms from October 19 and Larbert and Bo’ness libraries will do likewise on October 26.

Denny, Bonnybridge, Slamannan and Meadowbank libraries will reopen on November 2.

Customers will have to make an appointment to browse shelves, take out and return books and access printing and photocopying facilities.

The Click and Collect service which has been in place for several weeks will continue to allow the public to request books either online or over the phone.

FCT is asking all customers to book a browsing session or to use a PC, either online or by telephone.

Falkirk Library will also be providing a bus pass service from October 12. To book a bus pass, call 01324 503605.

An FCT spokeswoman said: “To ensure the safety of customers and staff, we are unable to offer space to study, or sit and use our Wi-Fi at this time.

“In addition, hard copies of magazines and newspapers will not be available, and we ask that customers keep touching of books that are not being taken out to a minimum.

“Scottish guidelines do not currently allow us to run the popular Bookbug service, or similar sessions and so no groups will be running in the libraries for the time being.

“Similar to a trip to the shops, visiting the library will now be a little different and we will continue to offer home access to a great range of digital books, magazines, audio books and more.”

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