Surry Hills Library

Looks nice in the outside but that’s just it.
Only two floors allowed for public to be in, minimal amount of seating areas, kids area is so noisy, computer room looks uncomfortable and small, oh and apparently you pay to use them if you’re not a member?
For a library at Surry Hills I expected better. Western libraries are honestly bigger than better than this!

Such a big beautiful library which has it all from old school books to all the tech you need or want.
The staff are so lovely and down to earth. They helped me with all I needed and then some.thanks

Laughably bad design and layout. Two public toilets only, ie. 2 users maximum (? With another two reserved exclusively for staff?). Bizarrely, the mirrors point downwards so you can't see aboove your shoulders. And you can't keep the water-tap on to wash your hands in a convenient way. To get to the public computers from the front door, you have to undertake a long U-shaped hike. Poor ventilation throughout, so bad that the computer area can get uncomfortably hot. The toilets don't seem to have functioning ventilation either. And the staircase is too narrow to accommodate traffic. The same sort of silly planning can be seen at Darling square and Ultimo libraries where half of the joint is reserved for staff - who is responsible for this nonsense?

Beautifully designed library with ample seating and toy exchange available, though the book selection is a bit small!

This is a great place to sit up at the window and work on your laptop. The computers and printing are downstairs if you need and I was happy there were bathrooms on both levels. As with any City of Sydney library you can request books from other branches which I have done here. It's very convenient checking books in and out and the architecture is amazing!

The staff at Surry Hills Library are all nice especially Ashliegh Hale is very helpful, very accommodating and excellent service. I highly recommend you Ashliegh for your superb service, you are one of a kind. Thank you so much. Keep it up. Pearly here

WIFI is really bad, except for that it is nice an bright (could have some more seating for working/studying)

A cosy, living room feeling, sitting there today as the rain came down outside, peaceful and true. The fires of Athenian wisdom glowing gently at my back. The hardware brain coders called librarians unobtrusive amongst the stacks they guard. The alcove feeling amongst the terminals connecting the wider world to these public places.

I needed to print documents urgently and managed to do it here at $0.2 per pages. Even without membership. Staffs were so kind and helpful thank you! Want to visit again to sit and read books next time. Quite and nice.

Nice and quiet as libraries should be. It was easy to become a member with assistance from the friendly staff. Tech issues with the sound on the pc I used downstairs but the staff did as much as possible to assist there. Overall, it was really nice.

The building is beautiful but the layout is not efficient at all. There are practically no powerpoints to charge laptops unless you're at the bench near the window and they are always full. This was my main concern and it is a huge issue.

The kids area is in the open and the noise echoes throughout the building so it is hardly ever quiet which doesn't make for a quiet study environment.

The Surry Hills Library opened in 2009 and has won a swag of architectural awards for its sustainable design. This flagship City of Sydney building spans 4 floors and also houses a community centre and childcare centre. It’s located in the heart of bustling Crown Street and is open 7 days a week.

There are plenty of spaces for reading and study in the library as well as a dedicated children’s corner on the entry level.

Librarians are talking so loudly. So much noise on a weekday afternoon. Don’t come here if you want to concentrate and study. Very limited seating as well. The place is also a lot smaller than imagined.

Pros:
- nice and friendly staff
- 10 minute walk from central
- nice study area with many power sockets to charge from

Cons:
- The children's area can occasionally be loud, makes it hard to study
- Only two toilets
- A bit small

I have found hundreds of dvd movies here and if i ever wanted a new release that wasn't on the shelf.they'll happily check the other libraries and have the dvd you're after sent over to surry hills or they'll even order it in.they strive to please

I love going to the library to read magazines but the selection is rather varied but limited. But Surry Hills Library is Calm, clean and wonderful library. Registration was easy with help from staff and their selection of books are impeccable.

Seriously need to improve your WiFi and seating area. Also questioning why is there a playground for small kids in the middle of a library (?) Seems a little bit of a conflicting choice here.

I'm just loving the up to date way to borrow books from this library. I search the site for my book and within a day or so, if available, it's there on the shelf waiting for me. Borrowed over 30 novels now. Registration was easy with help from friendly staff. Not sure about other services but building is a cracker. Yay.

I love public libraries, but have been here a few times and not had good experiences. Today, I've stopped in to do something as basic as checking and responding to some emails, but the internet here doesn't seem to be able to handle that. I have other places that I can go to access wi-fi, but am mindful that others may rely on the library for that.

I've previously come here to borrow some books. After pretty much every book I searched for not being in stock, I finally went to borrow one at the self-checkout. Asked for help from the librarian after one of the books wouldn't scan. She seemed pretty adamant on not actually looking at the book and insisted (quite rudely) that I was scanning it incorrectly. Finally, she looked at the book and the barcode was actually missing.

I really feel like a library in Sydney inner-city can step up their game. I realise that some issues may come down to funding and resources, but that others are down to attitude and enthusiasm (or lack of it), which is disappointing.

This library is a terrible place to do library stuff, like read and study. The building looks great from the outside but it's functionally a steaming pile of coprolite - right now a little kid is making loud dinosaur noises that you can hear unimpeded from pretty much anywhere in the library, because the kids area is central in the mostly open plan space. Seating is chronically lacking and all feels uncomfortably positioned like it's been crammed into scavenged spaces as if reading is an afterthought in a library. Internet currently at 0.22mbps, in keeping with the prehistoric theme.

Edit:
Day #2 - give the place a second chance because the state library is a bit of a hike.
There is an entire class of school kids here, the cacophony reminds me of when budgies all get in a tree and yell continuously. I'm in the most removed space downstairs, a cramped computer space, with headphones on.it's manageable. Oh wait now kids are playing tips and screaming right behind me, running around between the shelves. As they run past a staff member he mentions 'no running' but nothing about screams. They're happy kid noises, but damn are they annoying in this setting.

This place is more day care and children's play centre than library.

I should add that I'm sure the services provided by staff here are good and it's no fault of management that the place is designed terribly. It is their issue that kids are seemingly left to do what they want though.

Back in my day we were quiet in libraries, like studious little monks in a holy place. And when we weren't they beat us with heavy books and made us read sad books about soviet Russia with no pictures and no words.