Book borrowing returned to West Swindon on Tuesday, 30 June, as the library reopened in an upstairs room at the Link Centre. The service has been closed since 24 June while post-flood works continue across the building. Swindon Borough Council confirmed the interim arrangement will allow residents to collect reservations and pick up reads, though the familiar ground-floor space remains off-limits until refurbishment finishes at the end of the year.
The temporary offer is stripped back: borrowing and returns only. Public-use computers, Wi‑Fi and similar digital services will stay unavailable until the electrical overhaul is complete. Opening times are limited to four days a week — Tuesdays from 10am to 2pm, Wednesdays between 1pm and 5pm, Fridays from 10am to 2pm and Saturdays 10am to 1pm. The council’s disruption page still lists libraries under an amber warning, meaning some delays are likely. Every other council department — customer services, education transport, waste collections, housing and museums — has returned to a green, business-as-usual status.
The Link Centre has been wrestling with flood damage since September 2025, when water wrecked all ground-floor wiring and destroyed books, IT kit, flooring and electrics. Pool and gym areas have since reopened, and the library welcomed visitors back in June 2026 in a reduced footprint. Printing, scanning and photocopying had yet to be restored before this latest closure. Barnaby Rich of centre operators GLL previously called the flooding a “disaster for the people of Swindon”. Cabinet member for leisure Councillor Jim Grant said at the time that GLL were “doing the right thing” in tackling the aftermath.
While the Link Centre works progress, residents can still tap into free eBooks and eAudiobooks through the council’s digital library, reserve items online and visit any other branch across the borough. When the ground-floor refurbishment wraps up, the library will slot into the council’s expanding network of Community Hubs. A precise date for that move has not yet been set, but the council says it will be by the end of 2026.
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