Event and activity information

View the schedule of regular events

The events schedule shows regular events across the libraries and can be searched and filtered by location, audience and keywords.

Upcoming events

Bins on Tour

The Waste and Recycling team will be visiting libraries on the following dates to answer your questions about the new waste collection system in place.

  • Friday 3 March - Westcroft Library 10.30am to 12.30pm
  • Tuesday 14 March - Kingston Library 10am to 11.30am
  • Saturday 21 April - Woburn Sands Library 1.30 to 3.30pm

You can find more about the scheme on the website.

SALE at Central Library - Audiobooks on CD

We're holding a sale of audiobooks on CD at Central Library until 18 March with all books on sale for only £1.

Join Me: Our 2020 Events - Memorial Quilt at Central Library

8 March to 1 April 2023

Visit the first floor at Central Library to see this lockdown memorial quilt on display. It’s a community quilt project by Thread Thread Wine to memorialise the events that we most missed in 2020, whether cancelled, lost or postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Soraya Tate, founder of Thread Thread Wine

At Christmas 2020 I decided to make a memorial quilt, dedicated to acknowledging the events and opportunities that we lost in 2020.

  • I would create a quilt square about my own losses.
  • I would invite others to do the same about their losses.
  • I would join the pieces to make a quilt.
  • I would display the quilt in December 2021 at an event for the makers.

This is the project so far; I hope you enjoy viewing it and reading about it. We have 42 submissions and the quilt is 3m long.

We have made some of the squares into cards for sale, to raise money for the mental health charity MIND.

If you would like to contribute your artwork to this project, please email Soraya or visit the Thread Thread Wine (TTW) Facebook page.

Read more about the background to this project, the inspiration and the artists who have contributed by visiting the Memorial quilt project page.

Milton Keynes Literary Festival 2023

MK Lit Fest is back this April with author talks and conversations being held at Waterstones MK and Central Library. Read full details about the events and book your tickets online on the MK Lit Fest website.

Friday 14 April

  • Sinclair McKay: 50 Codes that Changed the World - 6-7pm at Waterstones.

Saturday 15 April

  • John Grindrod: Iconicon - 10-11am at Central Library.
  • The Art of the Short Story Masterclass with Tom Conaghan (Scratch Books) - 11am-12.30pm at Central Library.
  • Kit De Waal: Without Warning and Only Sometimes - 11.30am-12.30pm at Central Library.
  • Sarah Coyle: Pick a Story - 1-2pm at Central Library (Children's Library).
  • Lizzie Damilola Blackburn: Yinka, Where is Your Huzband? - 1-2pm at Central Library.
  • Schooling the Strange: Poetry Workshop with John McCullough - 1.30-3.30pm at Central Library.
  • Russell Jones: The Decade in Tory - 2.30-3.30pm at Central Library.
  • Rhian Tracey: Secrets and Spies - 3-4pm at Central Library (Children's Library).
  • MinK 2023 Anthology Launch: Green Spaces in the City - 4-4.45pm at Central Library.
  • Jennifer Saint: Atalanta - 6-7pm at Waterstones.

Download the Springs Back programme.

Easter Crafts with Community Learning MK

Bunnies, fluffy chicks and eggs can only mean one thing – it’s Easter!

Hop along to the library over the Easter break and join Paula from Community Learning MK for egg-citing family craft sessions. Yes, accompanying adults are included in the fun, so don’t chick-en out. (See what we did there?)

All sessions are 2-3pm, are suitable for children aged 3 and above and involve paint and glue so please wear suitable clothing. They are free to attend, but places are limited and need to be booked in advance.

Parents and carers must remain with their children throughout the session and are encouraged to get involved. Please only book tickets for the children who are attending the sessions and not any accompanying adults.

Regular events

Regular events and services for each library are also listed on the individual library information pages. New and one-off events are shown in the section above.

Adult - various regular activities

  • COMPUTER HELP SESSIONS WITH OUR IT BUDDIES

  • FAMILY HISTORY CONSULTATIONS - Central Library (dates to be confirmed)
  • JOB CLUBS - Central Library Tuesday 1-3pm (currently suspended) and Woughton Library Thursday 10am-12pm
  • KNIT AND NATTER sessions at various libraries
  • LIBRARY READING GROUPS at various libraries
  • MK NANOWRITERS meet on the second Saturday each month at Central Library 2pm to 4pm. It's a social group for writers although they do discuss writing as that's their shared hobby. If you'd like to know more or are interested in joining the group, please email mknanowriters@gmail.com.
  • SOCIAL SCRABBLE at Bletchley Library on Tuesdays 10.30-11.30am.
  • STONY LAST THURSDAY HISTORY SOCIETY - Drop-in any time between 2-5pm on the last Thursday of each month upstairs at Stony Stratford Library to chat with like-minded people about the history of Stony Stratford. If you'd like to know more, ask at Stony Stratford Library. (starts on 23 February 2023)

Children - various regular activities

Please note that some activities are term time only.

  • CODE CLUB (ages 9-13) at Central Library - Monday 4-5pm
  • CRAFT CLUB (ages 3-9) at Olney Library - Third Saturday each month 10.30-11.15am
  • LEGO AND DUPLO CLUBS at various libraries
  • READ AND PLAY sessions at Olney Library - Thursday 2.30-4.30pm
  • STAY AND PLAY sessions at Bletchley Library - Tuesday 10.30-11.30am (term time only)
  • STAY AND PLAY sessions at Central Library - Wednesday 1.30-2.30pm (term time only)
  • STONY MUSIC MAKERS at Stony Stratford Library - Tuesday 9.30-10.15am
  • STORIES, SONGS AND RHYMES at various libraries
  • STORY AND SONG TIME (by Woodlands and Tickford Meadow Children's Centres) at Olney Library - Tuesday 11.15-11.45am 

English conversation club

English conversation club is for anyone who would like to practise and improve their English as a second language, gain better skills for study or employment, or just get on in everyday life.

    Sessions at Central Library

    • Everyone is welcome to join us on the day and you don't need to register.
    • Conversation club sessions are held in the foyer at Central Library on Thursday mornings 11am-12pm.
    • If you'd like to know more you can phone 01908 254050 or speak to library staff.

    Exhibitions

    Discover MK

    The Discover MK Showcase area is on the first floor at Central Library. It is the primary showcase for the archive, museum and heritage of Milton Keynes and the surrounding area. It has a regularly changing series of exhibitions throughout the year and more information can be found on the Discover MK website.

    MK Together - 23 January to 31 March 2023

    A photographic exhibition celebrating the ways in which our community comes together – co-curated by Living Archive MK and city photographer Sagar Kharecha.

    Over recent years it has been difficult for many communities to gather in person. This exhibition celebrates different communities across Milton Keynes as they come together: in protest, in commemoration or in celebration.

    Living Archive MK has worked with local documentary photographer Sagar Kharecha. Sagar is dedicated to recording life in Milton Keynes in all its diversity. He describes himself as a ‘hyperlocal’ photographer, he shoots on 35mm black and white film, and he is fascinated by all aspects of life in the city.

    The exhibition also features archive photos from Living Archive’s collections.

    MK CITY PS EXHIBITION at Central Library - 21 February to 3 April 2023

    Visit the first floor at Central Library to see an exhibition of photography by members of the MK City Photographic Society with an inspiring selection of images captured through the camera lens.

    Read more about MK City PS on their website.

    UKRAINIAN ART EXHIBITION: PeaceHopeUkraine - 11 March to 11 April 2023

    The exhibition is on the ground floor at Central Library, open to all and free to attend. You'll see a selection of works by talented Ukrainian refugee artists and children and the exhibition has been curated to mark the one-year anniversary of Russia’s barbaric, full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

    PeaceHopeUkraine is organised by charities: Ukraine Appeal and The Chernobyl Relief Foundation in the UK. It is sponsored by Milton Keynes City Council and supported by Milton Keynes City Libraries. It is also supported by Info Art Frontier CIC and The Embassy of Ukraine to the UK and Northern Ireland - to all of whom we give our thanks and appreciation.

    You can find more information about the artists involved in the exhibition by visiting the Peace Hope Ukraine web page.

    The exhibition has also been featured on the BBC Look East programme on 16 March 2023.

    Friends Groups

    Friends Groups work in partnership with us and closely with local library teams to help support and enhance libraries in our local communities.

    They provide an important contribution to support and maintain awareness of a library in a local community.

    Folio - Olney Library

    Folio (The Friends of the Library in Olney) run a programme of talks which are held 7.30-8.30pm at The Olney Centre, Room 4 and they request that you arrive at 7pm for a 7.30pm start. Refreshments are served after each talk.

    • 6 March - New York: An Insight into our Travels to New York by Ray and Jenny Rawlins
    • 3 April - Heritage, History and Restoration of the Buckingham Canal by Athina Beckett
    • 15 May - The History of John Lewis and Waitrose by Mary Green
    • 5 June - Georgian Olney, A Time Traveller's Guide via Cowper & Newton Museum by Tom Jones
    • 3 July - Cassiobury: The Ancient Seat of the Earls of Essex by Paul Rabbitts
    • 4 September - 1000 Miles up the Amazon by Jean Yates
    • 2 October - The Mackintosh Myth - The Sources and Legacy of Charles Rennie Mackintosh by Natasha Buthee
    • 6 November - Operation Mincemeat. Who was Major William Martin? by Michael Kushner from Bletchley Park
    • 4 December - 'A Medieval Christmas' with music and instruments by Michael Brown

    Tickets are £5 in advance and can be booked online at Ticketsource or by phoning Ticketsource on 0333 666 3366.

    If you are no longer able to attend or have any questions, please email olneyfoliofriends@gmail.com.

    You can download a printable schedule of Folio talks here.

    FoSSL - Stony Stratford Library

    FoSSL (The Friends of Stony Stratford Library) run regular talks at the library and details for booking tickets for these events will be released closer to the time. If you'd like to join the mailing list to receive news and updates from FoSSL, email fosslmk@gmail.com.

    • Saturday 1 April at 2pm - crime writer and forensic psychiatrist Gabriell Monro presents 'Traces of Blood: Real Stories of Serial Killers' - a talk about how Gabriell came to write her books including the trilogy about the most notorious serial killers 'Traces of Blood'. Tickets are available from Stony Stratford Library from 7 March.

    Knit and natter

    • Several libraries host Knit and Natter groups.
    • Beginners and experts are all welcome.
    • Admission is free.

    Lego and Duplo clubs

    • Free all-round fun with Lego/Duplo clubs at several of our libraries.
    • We provide the bricks and you provide the imagination.
    • Everyone regardless of age is invited to join the fun.
    • Parents and carers are responsible for their child's safety.
    • Parents and carers must remain with their children throughout the sessions.

    Click on the session links to see the dates when clubs are running.

    Tuesday

    Wednesday

    Thursday

    Friday

    Saturday

    Library news

    Reading groups

    Do you enjoy reading? Would you like to talk about what you have read? Would you like to share your views with an informal group? Then why not join a reading group.

    Stories, songs and rhymes

    Summer Reading Challenge

    We're excited to bring you the Summer Reading Challenge each year during the summer holidays.

    Vacancies at Milton Keynes City Council libraries

    We hope you'll consider joining our team here at the Milton Keynes Libraries. You'll find details of any current vacancies across our libraries on the library vacancies webpage.

    Volunteering with Milton Keynes City Council libraries

    • We welcome volunteers at all ten of our libraries.
    • There are many interesting opportunities for volunteers within the Milton Keynes libraries and there's bound to be something that suits you.
    • Volunteers need to be at least 13 years old.

     

    Milton Keynes City Council Libraries contact information

    Milton Keynes Central Library, 555 Silbury Boulevard, Milton Keynes MK9 3HL