Manchester’s Portico Library has secured £6.4 million from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to deliver Portico Reunited, bringing its Grade II* listed building back together for the first time in a century and creating new spaces for reading, creativity, discovery and learning that are open to everyone.
The award is a major milestone in the approximately £12 million Portico Reunited campaign. Made possible by National Lottery players, the project will bring the ground floor and basement back into library use – taking over the ‘Bank’ pub space below – and introduce step‑free access throughout.
Visitors will be able to discover Northern writers and publishers in a new bookshop, explore Manchester’s food culture in the Portico Kitchen, and enjoy exhibitions, conversations and creative activities inside the historic library. Entry will remain free.
As the project enters its next phase, fundraising continues to complete the transformation and support the Portico’s work before, during and after construction. Individuals, businesses and charitable supporters will help raise the remaining match funding.
Founded in 1806, the Portico is a survivor of industrial Manchester, with its collection and archive preserved in their original Greek Revival home. Established as a subscription library and newsroom before Manchester had a free public library, it offered books, newspapers and periodicals for learning, pleasure and debate. Membership reflected the inequalities of the period; today, its collection offers a record of the ideas that shaped the city and the nation.
The Portico currently welcomes the public six days a week, but stairs limit access and the library occupies only the first floor. A reinstated, step‑free Mosley Street entrance will welcome people into the reunited building, opening new ways to experience its spaces and collection.
At its heart will be the historic collection of 25,000 books and archive material. From novels and poetry to science, travel, history and maps, the shelves preserve the reading lives of generations of Portico members and Manchester’s changing relationship with the wider world. The project will protect this collection and create new opportunities to explore it through school visits, creative workshops, research and exhibitions.
Members, volunteers, schools, community organisations, artists and project partners will help shape what happens in the reunited library. Their exhibitions and activities will connect the collection with people’s lives today, exploring both the voices preserved on its shelves and those missing from them.
Through Manchester’s literary and global connections, including histories of empire, enslavement, migration and resistance, the programme builds relationships between people, books and storytelling to acknowledge the legacies of trauma and loss from the past and find joy in stories of transformation and love. People and their stories will be at the heart of the Portico’s work with historic books and activities in the building.
Dr Thom Keep, Librarian and CEO of The Portico Library, said: “This is a landmark moment in the Portico’s rich and complex history, and a huge achievement for our staff, trustees, volunteers, and partners. Their imagination, care and persistence have brought us to this point. Thanks to National Lottery players, we can reunite this extraordinary building and make room for people to discover, learn and create together.
“We have listened to thousands of people about what the Portico could become, and their ideas and experiences have helped shape these plans. Our ambition is a library that belongs to the whole city: a place to discover remarkable collections, question the stories we have inherited, and create new possibilities together.
“Books and stories help us see the world through other people’s eyes, building understanding and empathy. Whether you come to read, share food, join a conversation or simply enjoy a moment of calm, we want you to feel that the Portico is yours too.”
Purcell’s architectural plans will conserve the building’s character while making it easier to enter, move around and enjoy. Alongside urgent repairs and restoration of the historic interiors and glazed dome, the plans include a lift, a Changing Places toilet and a quiet room. The Portico LightBox will connect the ground floor, first floor and dome.
Low‑carbon heating and environmental improvements will set the building on a path towards a net‑zero carbon future, helping address the impact of a changing climate on its historic fabric and collections.
Manchester City Council has granted planning permission and listed building consent. The building is expected to close for construction in late spring 2028 and reopen in early March 2030. Until then, the Portico will continue to welcome visitors through its ongoing programme.
During construction, its work will continue through Porti‑Go!, bringing collections, conversations and creative activities into temporary spaces, community settings and online. After reopening, the transformed library is expected to welcome around 95,000 visitors each year.
