Special events
Godalming spring poetry competition
Do you love how green the grass is?
Have the baby animals made you smile?
Why not sit and think about it for a little while!
Do you love seeing all the flowers?
Has the sun brightened up your day?
Tell us all about it using poetry as the way!
Competition is open from:
- Saturday 23 March to Saturday 27 April
Entries must fit onto one side of A4. The competition is open to all ages.
Hand in entries to the desk at Godalming Library or email them to godalming.library@surreycc.gov.uk
Beyond the Bassline exhibition and events
- from 26 April to 24 May
This exhibition shines a spotlight on different voices and perspectives to celebrate Black British music as a form of entertainment and vehicle for community, as well as a source of liberation, protest and education.
Stepping into carnivals, clubs and record shops across the country, Beyond the Bassline draws on different places that have cultivated creative expression and inspired a number of Black British music genres.
For more information about the Exhibition and tour please see our Living Knowledge network page.
Beyond the Bassline launch event - An evening with Eddy Grant livestream
- Saturday 27 April, from 2pm to 4pm
Godalming Library are excited to livestream the launch of Beyond the Bassline – 500 Years of Black British Music. With musical legend Eddy Grant in conversation with Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy, plus vinyl playbacks of some of his greatest tracks, inspirations and overlooked gems. (Recorded the previous evening).
Drop-in livestream event, no booking required.
Donations Welcome.
Surrey Cultural Lives events with University of Surrey
Jane White: From the Norfolk Coast to the Surrey Jungle
Jane White was a novelist who lived in Godalming from 1963 to 1985. Her first novel Quarry, published in 1967, was set in the town. The talk will explore her first novel Quarry and its view of the surroundings in which its three teenage characters become adults.
- Tuesday 14 May from 2pm until 4pm
Tickets are free but need to be booked online.
Book tickets for Jane White at Godalming library
Balchen's Victory with author Alan Smith
Join us for an afternoon with local author Alan Smith as he talks about his book Balchen's Victory, a fascinating and, until now, unknown story of a ship and her captain.
The session will end with some audience questions and a book signing.
- Wednesday 19 June at 3pm
Since 2016 Alan has been a volunteer at the National Museum of the Royal Navy in Portsmouth as a guide on Nelson's HMS victory and an historical researcher for the Diving Deep: HMS Invincible Project.
Tickets are £5, include refreshments and can be booked or by visiting us in branch.
Book tickets for Balchen's Victory at Godalming library
Pebble rhymetime and storytime
Pebble rhymetime
- Every Tuesday at 11am.
- Every Thursday at 11am.
- Every Saturday at 11am.
No booking required.
Find out more about Pebble rhymetimes in Surrey Libraries.
Storytime
- Every Wednesday at 11am.
Find out more about storytime in Surrey libraries.
Cantonese rhymetime and bilingual storytime
- on the 4th Saturday of every month from 10am until 10.30am
Suitable for children aged 18 months and over. No booking required.
Cantonese:
廣東話唱遊與雙語故事班
歡迎一歲半或以上小朋友及其家長參加，一齊手舞足蹈唱歌仔，認識朋友仔，輕鬆學習不同的語言 不用預約
- 每月第四個星期六，上午 10am 至 10.30am
Reading groups
Godalming library reading group
- Meets on the first Thursday of the month, from 2pm until 3pm.
Find out more about reading groups in Surrey libraries.
Friday reading group
- Meets on the first Friday of the month from 2pm until 3pm.
Find out more about reading groups in Surrey libraries.
Other events
Hearing Aid clinic
The Hearing Aid Clinic is returning to Godalming Library. The clinic will allow for routine maintenance of your hearing aid. No booking is required.
- 3rd Monday of the month from 10.30am until 12.30pm, on the following dates:
- 20 May
- 17 June
- 15 July
- 19 August
- 16 September
- 21 October
- 18 November
- 16 December
Scrabble club
Scrabble Club is launching at Godalming Library on Friday 17 May from 2pm to 3.30pm, continuing on alternate Fridays during term time. Free, no booking required, just turn up.
Further dates:
- 31 May
- 14 June
- 28 June
- 12 July
Knit and stitch craft group
- alternate Mondays, from 2.30pm until 4pm. Upcoming dates:
- 22 April
- 13 May
- 3 June
- 10 June
- 24 June
- 8 July
- 22 July
Join us at Godalming Library on alternate Monday afternoons (excluding bank holidays). Bring your own craft project to work on and meet new people. Open to everyone and all crafts are welcome!
Lego and Duplo club
- every Monday from 4pm until 5pm
Lego suitable for ages 6+ or Duplo available for younger children aged 2 to 5.
Sessions cost £1. Please email godalming.library@surreycc.gov.uk to book a space or visit us in branch.
Dungeons and Dragons
- Every Tuesday during term time from 4pm to 6pm.
Join the Wayfarer's League on a new adventure at Godalming Library as our Dungeon Masters guide you through character creation and learning the joys of tabletop roleplaying. You will then venture forth with your newly made character, along with your party members on a grand adventure!
Dice, Character sheets and all materials are provided.
For ages 10 to 14.
Cost: £10 per session, paid by the term.
Spaces are limited so booking necessary.
For additional information and to book please check the Wayfarer's website.
What next? Wednesdays
Local charity What Next? will be in Godalming Library offering eco advice, information and support. Come and chat to one of their volunteers, share your thoughts and concerns.
- Every Wednesday from 2pm until 5pm
What Next? wardrobe warriors
- second Wednesday of every month from 3pm to 5pm
We will help you keep your favourite, comfy clothes going for longer. We can be company whilst you sew on a button or put up a hem. We will have needles, thread in a few colours, a sewing machine and some people who can sew. Bring your buttonless tops, your toeless socks and your holey frocks.
Godalming library Reading Friends poetry group
Godalming Library invites you to join our friendly and informal Poetry Group.
- Thursday afternoons, once a month, from 2pm to 3pm. Upcoming dates and themes:
- 16 May: The Environment
- 13 June: Humour
- 25 July: Death, grief and solace
- 22 August: Animals
- 19 September: Parents and grandparents
- 17 October: Britain
- 14 November: Solitude
- 12 December: A reading of "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens
No specialist knowledge is required, just an interest in sharing our enjoyment of poetry. We will be reading some poetry and talking about the poems and poets we love.
For more information about the Reading Friends programme in Surrey Libraries please see our Reading Friends webpage.
German conversation group
- Meets on the last Friday of the month from 10.30am until 11.30am.
Digital Buddy
Free, one to one, 45 minute computer help sessions.
Appointments are available on:
- Mondays at 10am, 10.45am and 11.30am.
- Fridays at 2pm, 2.45pm and 3.30pm.
For further details and to book an appointment, please ask a member of staff in the library.
Please see our Digital Buddy page for more information and to find out which libraries currently offer a Digital Buddy service.
