Hello from Coleshill Library!

Hello everyone and welcome to Coleshill Library! We are a small library based in a market town in North of Warwickshire, not far from Birmingham, whose name comes from the river Cole. Coleshill is an old Georgian coaching town which many people used as a stopping point, using one of the 25 pubs which were around at that time. Nowadays Coleshill has a thriving community with lots of local shops on the high street.

Interesting Facts about Coleshill

It is believed that an elephant’s remains were buried in Coleshill 112 years ago! It is said that the elephant died from choking whilst eating a vegetable called a mangelwurzel whilst it was walking from nearby Shustoke with the travelling circus. Locals believe that it was buried where Morrisons now resides, though the remains have never been uncovered! In 2018 a statue was erected outside the Town Hall that depicts the elephant balanced on a wheel, which represents the coaching history of the town. Read more about it in this article in the Birmingham Mail: https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/search-elephant-buried-under-morrisons-26018639

The library hasn’t always been in its current location – It used to be housed in a Georgian building on the High Street. The building is now being featured in the TV programme, Saving the Manor. It follows Dean Poulton and Borja De Maqua’s journey as they renovate the property and grounds of the three-hundred-year-old estate. The show features some lovely views of Coleshill, as well as our local Fish and Chip shop and some local residents who are also regular library customers! You can watch the show on Discovery + at https://www.discoveryplus.com/gb/show/saving-the-manor

Meet the Staff

Gail

My name is Gail and I’ve worked for Warwickshire Libraries for 31 years. I have seen a lot of change in my time in libraires, but one of the things that has never changed is the joy I get from helping customers and seeing the difference libraries can make to people’s lives. In my spare time I love to draw, paint and do pottery. My favourite type of book to read is crime, some of my favourite authors being Elly Griffiths, Dorothy L Sayers and Donna Leon to name a few. I highly recommend that you come and visit Coleshill Library and see all the different things we have on offer.

Lee

My name is Lee. I have worked for Warwickshire Libraries for 7 years, starting off as an apprentice at Nuneaton Library then working at Coleshill Library for the past 5 years. I love my job and strongly believe that libraries enhance lives and make a difference in so many ways, from young to old, the variety of users who come in make the job so enjoyable. I believe that libraries are so much more than books, becoming a refuge and a safe space for the community. I enjoy reading non-fiction books, in particular musician biographies. I also enjoy reading absurdist fiction such as The Metamorphosis and Other Stories by Franz Kafka. When I am not at work I enjoy building Lego, listening to music (in particular The Beatles – George is my favourite!)

Rachel

I’m Rachel and I’ve worked for WCC library services since October 2019. My favourite thing about working in the library is the sheer variety of people I get to meet, and the jobs I get to do. I meet and help everyone from tiny babies and their mums who attend our baby sessions, to children learning to read, to teenagers who are reluctant to pick up a book because it’s not “cool”, to adults wanting to research something or lose themselves between the pages of a book. No two days are the same and there’s always something new to learn or find out.

Personally speaking I like to read historical fiction (I’m a massive Tudor nerd), horror (especially vampire stories) and fantasy. I’m a massive Terry Pratchett fan, I’ve had the honour of playing one of his characters twice in plays, and most of my pets have been named after his characters, including my 13 year old cat Binky. One of the best books I’ve read recently however was Dracul by Dacre Stoker (Bram Stoker’s great-great nephew). It takes the original story of Dracula and turns it on its head, thanks to the use of notes left behind by Bram Stoker after his death. Well worth a read! As a bit of a wild card, I also really like books by the author Freya North – I have a signed copy of one of her books, and one of her newer books has characters named after me and my cat. She informed me of this after it went to print, and it was a lovely surprise as we’ve had sporadic email correspondence for years.

Outside of work and books, I am very musical – I sing and I play the piano and the alto saxophone – and I love knitting and crocheting. My granddad taught me to knit when I was about 4 years old, and I’ve done it ever since! A lot of my time is taken up with my five year old son, and with a baby due in July I don’t think I’m going to have much time to read and knit for a while….

What We’ve Been Up To Lately

In March, the Coleshill Poetry Collective held a poetry evening with guest poet Loraine Masiya Mponela and the Warwickshire Young Poet Laureate, Emily Hunt. It was a very successful evening with a good turnout and a fun atmosphere. We are already planning our next event, so watch this space!

We’ve been having weekly visits from Coleshill Day Services, who have been bringing their residents for special sessions using our Bag Books. It’s so wonderful to see those smiling faces as we sing rhymes and tell them interactive stories using our special ‘Bag Books’.

We celebrated World Book Day with an after school drop in craft event where children made their own bookmarks and made a self-portrait featuring their favourite books, which included Peter Rabbit and Harry Potter, to name just a couple!

What We Do

We have so much going on at Coleshill Library. Here are a few of our regular events:

For Children

Rhyme Time followed by Stay and Play with Duplo
Every Tuesday at 11am
Join us for a session of nursery rhymes followed by playing with Duplo, aimed at 0-2 year olds and their carers

Story Stomp followed by Stay and Play with Duplo
Every Friday at 11am
Join us for a session of stories and rhymes followed by playing with Duplo, aimed at 2-4 year olds and their carer

Lego Club
Every Saturday 11am-12noon and, term time, Thursdays 3:30-4:30pm
Imaginative and creative Lego sessions aimed at children and their parents

For Adults

Knitting Group
Every Tuesday from 2pm
Join our friendly group of knitters for a knit and natter

IT Help
Every Thursday 10am-12noon
Get help using a computer or your own device. Please book in advance.

Poetry Group
First Saturday of the month 10am-12noon
A friendly group who get together to share and listen to poetry.

Crochet Group
Alternate Thursdays from 10am (check Eventbrite for dates)
Join our friendly group of crocheters for a chat and some crochet

Family History Surgery
Third Monday of the month 10am-12noon
Get help with your research and discoveries with our family history expert

Opening Hours

Day	Opening hours
Monday	9.30am to 12.30pm
Tuesday	9.30am to 12.30 and 1.30pm to 5.30pm
Wednesday	9.30am to 12.30pm
Thursday	9.30am to 12.30 and 1.30pm to 5.30pm
Friday	9.30am to 12.30pm
Saturday	9.30am to 12.30pm
Sunday	Closed

We hope to see you very soon!

Don’t forget to follow us on social media and to check out our Eventbrite to find out what we’re getting up to and what events we have coming up soon!