Plans for the second phase of Oldham's Old Library restoration revealed

Plans for the second phase of a major restoration project of Oldham’s former library and gallery which will open it back up to residents have been lodged.

The Grade-Two listed Old Library on Union Street in the town centre is to be refurbished into a home for the Oldham Theatre Workshop. It will also contain a new council chamber and function facilities, a gallery and ‘flexible spaces’ linked to Gallery Oldham.

Proposals for the iconic building, which was built in 1883, are part of a long-running ambition by the town hall – first unveiled in 1996 – to create a ‘cultural quarter’ in the town centre.

Works to prevent further deterioration and prepare the building for redevelopment began in December 2021.

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It had originally been proposed to turn the entirety of the building into a heritage centre, but this was shelved in favour of a more mixed-use development.

However last summer the town hall stated that civic artefacts and silverware will be housed in the Old Library, while a public archive will be created within Spindles Shopping Centre.

A full planning application for the works has now been lodged by the local authority. Under the detailed plans, the ground floor would primarily contain the space for Oldham Theatre Workshop, with a new entrance created on the south of the west elevation.

The workshop would move from its existing base in the Quaker Meeting House, which is planned to become a new theatre and potential future home for the Coliseum theatre company, opening in 2026.

An entrance for the new council chamber would be on the west side of the Old Library, which leads to the reception and atrium space. On