Glasgow Women's Library celebrates its 35th birthday

Glasgow Women's Library is celebrating a milestone in 2026: its 35th birthday. The library, based on Landressy Street in Glasgow's East End, is the only accredited museum in the UK dedicated to women's lives, histories and achievements.

In its first programme of the year, the library noted that coral and jade are the traditional and modern symbols of a 35th anniversary, both representing strength, longevity and resilience. Its story, it said, is one of surviving and thriving against the odds through times of political and economic uncertainty, and the anniversary year is also a time for major fundraising to help secure its future.

GWL combines a lending library and archive collections with a lively programme of public events and learning. Its collections range from the smallest protest badge to artworks embedded in the fabric of the building, reflecting the experiences of women past and present. It has worked with artists since its earliest days in a storefront in Garnethill.

The spring programme brought back the popular Women's Heritage Walks, a chance to explore hidden aspects of Glasgow's history and learn about the women who shaped the city. Ahead of the Scottish Parliament elections, the library hosted Suffragettes: The Hard-Won Fight for Votes for Women, bringing together three experts on suffrage history.

The library also continued to celebrate three decades of the Lesbian Archive at GWL with Chloe Austin's exhibition Darling Diaphanous, while the Lesbian Snapshot Collective ran a creative archiving workshop inviting people to bring and share personal photographs.

Regular free events include a Conversation Cafe, book groups, online talks and a warm and supportive writing group for beginners and seasoned writers alike.

The collections also inspire new work. Co-commissioned by Let's Change the Act and GWL, author Chitra Ramaswamy has responded to reproductive rights campaign materials held in the library, and online events such as A Women's Oral History of West Africa with Sylvia Arthur combine archive audio with discussion.

There are many ways to get involved, from borrowing books and attending events to volunteering and helping to develop projects.

Glasgow Women's Library is at 23 Landressy Street, Glasgow. The latest programme, events and ways to support the library are at womenslibrary.org.uk.