Bendigo Library to open later on Saturdays!

Bendigo Library will soon be open until 3pm on Saturdays in response to public demand! The new hours will take effect on Monday 1 February, and fulfil a long standing request from the community.

Goldfields Library Corporation CEO, Chris Kelly, said that the longer Saturday hours at Bendigo Library make sense as it is the largest library service in the region. 

“Library users have been asking for Bendigo Library to stay open for longer on Saturdays and we are pleased to be able to deliver this to the community,” says Ms Kelly. 

“The benefits of this new initiative are far reaching for library users and Bendigo in general as it will help invigorate CBD activity for longer on Saturdays. People will now be able to enjoy our wonderful new facility for extra time on weekends.” 

Bendigo stands to gain economic benefits from the change, as the new Saturday hours will bring the library hours into line with the hours of many businesses in the CBD, offering community members more reasons to stay in town for longer on Saturdays. 

The Red Well Café, located inside the library, will trial opening from 10am-3pm on Saturdays for the month of February. Their weekday hours will remain unchanged – 9am-5pm. 

The Bendigo Volunteer Resource Centre, also located inside the library, will continue to operate with the same open hours – Monday-Friday, 10am-4pm. 

The introduction of Saturday Stories at Bendigo Library in 2016 is another reason for families to incorporate the library into their Saturday plans. Monthly sessions will run at 10.30am during term time, and nurture literacy for pre-schoolers and early primary school children. 

Along with the library’s wide range of books, publications, audio, CDs and DVDs to browse and borrow, there are also many services available such as free wi-fi. The library regularly hosts free activities for children, young adults and adults, with recent program highlights including Michael Leunig, Orchestra Victoria and The Age reporter Gideon Haigh.

To counter balance the longer Saturday hours, evening hours during the week will reduce by one hour to 6pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, with Tuesdays and Thursdays still open until 7pm. Visitation figures indicate that a later close time on Saturday will benefit a significantly larger number of patrons than longer hours every weekday.

Full Bendigo Library hours can be found at: www.ncgrl.vic.gov.au/libraries/bendigo