The events schedule shows regular events across the libraries and can be searched and filtered by location, audience and keywords.
View the schedule of regular events
1 to 31 July 2025
Welcome to the third ‘Textile Heaven’ exhibition on the first floor at Central Library. The exhibition showcases the work created during Textile Heaven courses offered through Community Learning MK.
We hope you enjoy the array of local creativity and are perhaps inspired to join a course and get creative.
We welcome your comments in the visitor book.
Monday 28 July 2025
Marco Cardoso is a master magician who has been mesmerizing audiences across the UK for over a decade. He joins us for two performances for adults and children aged 5+.
Tickets cost £5 each and must be booked online in advance as places are limited. Click on this link to book your Magic Show tickets (you’ll be taken to Eventbrite and can select your chosen show time).
Please ensure you arrive in time to settle before the show start times.
Kingston Library is closed to the public on this day and is only open for these events. Children must be accompanied by an adult who should remain with them throughout the performance.
Learn more about Marco and his magic by visiting Marco’s website or Marco Cardoso Magic on Instagram.
Heritage Open Days is England's largest community led festival of history and culture, involving thousands of local volunteers and organisations. Every year in September it brings people together to celebrate their heritage, community and history. Stories are told, traditions explored, and histories brought to life. It’s your chance to see hidden places and try out new experiences – and it’s all FREE.
For those early birds who would like to book on one of the Family History sessions, here are the details.
Twenty-minute family history consultations with expert John Hanson are available to book.
24 July 2025 to 30 August 2025
Welcome to our programme of children’s activities for the summer holidays. All events are FREE but some require booking in advance as places are limited.
Download the full programme here.
If you have booked a place for an activity and are unable to attend, please let us know by emailing: library.promotions@milton-keynes.gov.uk to allow your tickets to be reallocated.
If your child has any additional needs you’d like us to know about, please email library.promotions@milton-keynes.gov.uk as we hope to make the experience fun for everyone.
Parents and carers must remain in the library throughout the sessions.
These sessions operate from 24 July 2025 to 30 August 2025.
These summer activities require booking online in advance. Click on the link for the relevant activity and you’ll be taken to the booking form.
Join Alina Orchestra musicians as they perform two ‘Band in a Van’ interactive concerts.
Performing anything from Disney to classical music, the audiences are encouraged to shake instruments, sing along, take part in body percussion, and even conduct the group. It’s great fun, with a friendly, relaxed atmosphere. The band plays a range of music to enthuse, excite and entertain everyone in this interactive family friendly event (you can even try an instrument at the end of the event).
You'll need to book your free place in advance for these events. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Click on the link to book your tickets:
Join Tiny Talk for British Sign Language signing sessions and learn to communicate with your babies before they can talk.
These baby sessions are for ages 0-2 but older siblings are welcome to attend alongside parents/carers.
Use the links below to book the session you’d like to attend. You only need to book a place for the adult, regardless of how many children will be attending.
Parents/carers must remain with their children throughout the sessions.
Two groups will be introduced to brass instruments including Cornet and Baritone. By the end of the workshop, you’ll be able to read some musical notes and play them. Suitable for beginners and those with no experience.
Funded by Woburn Sands Town Council.
Join us for craft workshops based on a book by Steve Herman. Children will be led through the skills of drawing, colouring and card engineering to produce a stand-up storyboard to take home. The book’s teaching point of perseverance will inspire the children to create their own tale of perseverance.
Funded by Woburn Sands Town Council.
Join us for a fantastic clay workshop where you can choose your favourite cartoon, film or book character - or maybe a pirate, robot or mermaid - and create their face in a clay relief model to take home and paint. You’ll need to wear an apron or old clothes for this one!
Funded by Woburn Sands Town Council.
Join Explore Learning for this tailor-made enchanted story-writing adventure which ties in with the 2025 Summer Reading Challenge, Story Garden.
Explore Learning tutors will coach children to ‘plant’ the seeds of a great idea through a series of challenges and puzzles. By the end of the hour, they will have created a magical story for a young book bee who needed their own unique story.
To book your place, click on the relevant link below.
Create Horrible Histories characters with Studio 43: from Rotten Romans to Vile Victorians and many more!
To book your place for this event, you need to contact Stony Stratford Library on 01908 562562 or speak to staff when you next visit.
Listen to pirate adventures and then do some pirate-themed crafts.
The session is suitable for ages 3 and above and parents/carers will join the crafting fun! If you need support with English as a second language for this activity, please let us know in advance by emailing library.promotions@milton-keynes.gov.uk
Please note that the sessions are all the same so please do not book multiple sessions, as we’d like as many families as possible to be able to attend.
With the Summer Reading Challenge theme of ‘The Story Garden’ in mind, we’ll be using vibrant coloured inks to create repeating patterns inspired by plants and flowers from our gardens. Please wear old clothes as it can get messy!
Funded by Woburn Sands Town Council
Thursday 28 August (11am-12.15pm) at Woburn Sands Library - FULL
Storytimes with puppets, toys, bubbles and Lego.
These sessions are aimed at children/young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in a non-judgmental setting. The libraries where these sessions are held will remain closed to the public on the day and are open specifically for these pre-booked sessions.
Support staff are welcome. Please only book places for the children attending and not any accompanying adults or siblings (who are welcome to come along).
Join The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) for fantastic STEM workshops with hands-on hoop gliders and flight activities. Parents must remain with their children throughout the sessions but only book tickets for the children attending.
Get creative with this craft session by the ‘Crafting for Change’ group at Stony Stratford Library. You’ll make Ninjas and Peg Dolls using straws and your imagination!
Funded by Stony Stratford Town Council.
To book your place for this event, you need to contact Stony Stratford Library on 01908 562562 or speak to staff when you next visit.
Join Adey from Drum United Academy this Summer for positive mindset drumming & body-beats. Sessions are great fun with body-tapping, air-drumming, box-drums and drumsticks!
Sessions are FREE but require booking in advance as places are limited. You can register via the Drum United Academy website using the relevant links below to book your sessions. Each registration allows for one adult with up to 3 children.
Kingston Library on Tuesday 29 July
Stony Stratford Library on Wednesday 30 July
Central MK Library on Thursday 31 July
Parents/carers must stay with their children throughout the session.
If you need to cancel your booking, please contact Drum United directly using the Drum United contact form.
These summer activities are drop-in and require no booking:
We offer stories, songs and rhymes at various libraries over the summer (in addition to the weekly storytimes listed above and these sessions are all drop-in with no booking necessary.
You’ll find art, craft and colouring supplies on the craft table at the library – enjoy!
Choose from the adult and children’s design sheets and colour away!
Join children's book illustrator, Maria Christania, for a 3-day residency at Central Library! You’ll be able to watch Maria as she makes illustrations come to life. Learn about the art of illustration and you’ll have the opportunity to create your own artwork too!
Just stop by Central Library during the following times and take a seat – no booking is necessary.
See more of Maria’s work on her website or visit her Etsy page.
This year's challenge from The Reading Agency is all about adventures in nature and the great outdoors - inspiring children to tap into a world of imagination through reading and to celebrate adventure, fantasy and storytelling through nature and the great outdoors. Sign up at any of the Milton Keynes Libraries from Friday 18 July.
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.
Please note that some activities are term time only.
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.
The session on 28 August 2025 is CANCELLED.
The library offers many resources to help those who speak other languages and are looking to learn English as a second language (ESOL). The library also provides a range of material to help you improve your basic language and reading skills.
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.
Made in MK
From April 2025
Take a trip down memory lane with this exhibition showcasing many of the local industries and companies that have been in and around Milton Keynes for many years - including Boatbuilding in Stony Stratford with The Watling Works, McCorquodale Printing in Newport Pagnell and Brush Making in Bletchley.
This is another fantastic exhibition brought to you by Living Archive MK.
JOIN ME: Our 2020 Events - Memorial Quilt at Stony Stratford Library
Visit Stony Stratford 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.
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.
We offer Family History support from our volunteers:
FIRST STEPS
Get started with your family tree or research and have a beginner's guide to ancestry.com at Olney Library.
Book your free session by emailing library.enquiries@milton-keynes.gov.uk.
EXPERT ADVICE
If you’re having difficulties with your research and need some advice, John will use his years of experience to help you at Central Library.
Book your free 30-minute session by emailing library.enquiries@milton-keynes.gov.uk or calling 01908 254050.
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.
Tickets are £6 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.
Tickets are available from Stony Stratford Library (01908 562562).
Visit the FOSSL website at: https://fossl.org.uk/ for the latest news and information.
Click on the session links to see the dates when clubs are running.
These are the summer holiday club times and some sessions will change in September so please visit the website for the regular days and times.
Click on the session links to see the dates when clubs are running.
You can subscribe to library newsletters to hear the latest news or follow us on our various social media pages.
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.
We're excited to bring you the Summer Reading Challenge each year during the summer holidays.
We're currently recruiting volunteers to help deliver the Summer Reading Challenge this summer. If you're aged 13-25 head over to the Summer Reading Challenge web page to learn more.
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.
Milton Keynes Central Library, 555 Silbury Boulevard, Milton Keynes MK9 3HL