The University of Kent will celebrate the formal opening of the refurbished and extended Templeman Library during the week 19-23rd March.

The celebrations will include ‘Templeman Unseen’ – a tour of the archives; ’Why is reading always a problem?’ – a lecture by Frank Furedi, Emeritus Professor of Sociology; ‘Dateline Kent’ – a news discussion panel with Gavin Esler, University of Kent Chancellor; and a special edition of ’The Listening Project’ with Fi Glover – Kent Alumna and Honorary Graduate, themed around universities, libraries and students. All events are free to attend, open to the public, and will take place in the Templeman Lecture Theatre.

Templeman Library is now the largest in Kent; used by 9,000 people every day, it houses a collection of more than one million books and journals. The refurbishment and extension bring together a variety of reader spaces, versatile collection and exhibition space, and a distinctive resin clad 250 seat lecture theatre. The treatment of the extension façade inverts the balance of the original brutalist architecture of the building to create a strong and holistic architectural identity.