Six things to know about this key service in your emerging city heart
- It’s ground-breaking. Ipswich Children’s Library became the first dedicated children’s library in Australia when it opened its doors in June 2021.
- It’s unexpected. As well as books and audio, Ipswich Central Library’s 35,000 items includes two life-sized dinosaurs. Young explorers can “feed” them and watch the food zip through air-filled pipes.
- It’s creative. The library includes places for young visitors to create their own works. Using augmented reality technology, they can do bring drawings to life, colouring and scanning them and seeing them move against an ocean backdrop, or stand in front of a mirror and watch butterflies dance around you.
- It’s kid-friendly. Sounds obvious given the name, but Ipswich Children’s Library is a space designed for young people from birth to 12. That goes down to the small details like the custom-made children’s catalogue, which lets young readers gain confidence by exploring the library collection using an image-based search platform.
- It’s adult-friendly. You can make a day of it in the Nicholas Street Precinct by also exploring dining experiences such as a choc-orange gelato at Gelatissimo, or a cappuccino at Stellarossa. There’s even Ipswich Central Library for grown-ups, right across from the Ipswich Children’s Library at the top of Tulmur Place.
- It’s free. 35,000 things to look at, borrow, play with and create, and it’s still free entry to Ipswich Children’s Library.
