Revitalizing Paisley: Award-Winning Library Project Breathes New Life into Town Centre

The Award-winning Paisley Learning and Cultural Hub is the new home for Paisley Central Library. It is the latest venue to open as part of a wider push by Renfrewshire Council to use culture and heritage to drive regeneration and give people reasons to visit the town centre. The brief for Paisley Central Library was to create a dynamic, community focussed, new Central Library set within a challenging historic building at 22 High Street, Paisley.

We were thrilled to be chosen to design the space as part of the investment in this vital service for the community in Paisley. Internally, the complex building alterations create a welcoming, varied and light interior environment which provides a series of linked urban rooms within the constraints of the existing footprint.

The project saw a former shop unit refurbished over four floors, with a new modern frontage added. The ground floor includes a reception area and provides a venue where everyone is welcome to come and enjoy what is one of Scotland’s best library facilities.

An urban foyer accessed from the High Street leads to secret rooms for children to play and explore within the children’s library and a storytelling area with play structure featuring designs by Scottish artist Claire Barclay. A living room on the 1st floor houses the main library collection and leads to events rooms for meetings and performances. The 2nd floor reading room provides a quiet environment and leads to the study room gallery and an outdoor room providing an external, elevated garden.

Furthermore, the library has beautiful spaces for children and families to enjoy, IT and digital facilities offering increased connectivity, spaces for events and to support the Paisley Book Festival – and, of course, places where people can just relax and enjoy some time with a good book.

Upper floors include an outdoor terrace, community rooms and a study area for young adults, as well as free Wi-Fi, PC access and spaces to plug in your own device throughout the building.