This is no ordinary red telephone box… this is a telephone box library! It’s in the village of Woburn in Bedfordshire. When we visited there were some children’s books there. Watch our video below to see what we discovered.
How many kids books will I find in the telephone box library in Woburn?
My 4 year old son was absolutely delighted to come away with a book and it was such a novelty for him to open up an old phone box. Like anything like this I wouldn’t suggest you build your hopes up that there’s going to be lots of kids books in there if you do visit. There may be none depending on how popular it’s been or who came before you. Perhaps go with the intention of leaving some of your pre-loved books for other children to find, or just take a look if you’re passing to see what’s in there – then it’ll be lovely surprise if you do find one.
Why is the telephone box library in Woburn?
The parish council – which is behind it – say they had seen them elsewhere and thought it would be great for the village. They were going to make it a floral feature for their Anglia in Bloom entry but they decided to combine ideas and have a free library with flowers. They say they’re always looking to add useful things for the community and a coat of paint and some books turned an eyesore into an asset. It will be there as long as it is used and anyone can come and donate a book. Isn’t that fabulous?
What else is there in Woburn?
Woburn’s an absolutely fabulous place to visit without the kids, ha ha. I’m not joking. There’s a champagne and wine bar, coffee house, village store, lovely shops, Loch Fyne, nice couple of pubs… it’s very classy – they used to have an oyster festival – it’s not the oyster festival anymore. I digress. If you’re visiting with children then, keeping the village store on your left, drive down the high street and turn right, there’s a good sized retro park there next to the village hall. There’s also an outdoor swimming pool which is open on selected days and times. Parking wise you can park directly outside the village store for about 20 minutes I think. Otherwise there’s a larger public car park nearby. If you do visit let me know if you donate or borrow any books. And if you know of other quirky small free libraries then do comment below.
I'm Laura, mum of two boys - aged six and four. I started this website at the end of Sept 2015 whilst on maternity leave. I now work four days a week and do this blog late at night once the little boys are sleeping. It's won several awards over the last four years and I continue to run it for free and mostly focus on free, cheap, and good value days out. Do drop me an email laura@miltonkeyneskids.com if you want to contact me. Don't forget to follow all of our latest adventures on facebook, instagram and twitter and have a look at all of the videos of the places we visit on the Milton Keynes Kids YouTube Channel - subscribe to it for notifications every time I add a new place. And remember... you may been reading this post months after we visited, do check with the destination you're visiting for up to date opening times and prices. If you find this blog useful then please do comment on my posts and leave me a Facebook review - it makes doing this all the more worthwhile.
Also a phone box library by the church in Flitton – been there sometime .
Oh how lovely Marian thanks for letting us know, Laura