Folkestone is a Library: World's Largest Book Swap

This spring, we’re heading to Sunny Sands for something special - the largest ever community book exchange. Imagine hundreds of people lined up along the beach, swapping stories as the bell rings, and coming together for a huge group photo to mark the moment.

And we need your help to make it happen.

It’s free and open to everyone as part of Folkestone is a Library - a project celebrating books, stories and community while we wait for our town library to reopen. By joining in, you’ll help show that Folkestone itself is a living library, full of imagination and connection.

To take part, register in advance, bring one book you’d love to pass on, and swap it for another on the day. There’ll be live entertainment, official adjudicators, and press photographers ready to capture the record-breaking moment.

We’d love families, children and young people to be at the heart of this celebration. To make sure there are plenty of children’s books to share, you can donate spares at the Quarterhouse before the event.

This isn’t just about breaking a record - it’s about celebrating community, creativity and the joy of sharing stories.

Click here for the Book Swap FAQs

ABOUT FOLKESTONE IS A LIBRARY
Folkestone is a Library is a three-year Arts Council England-funded project turning our whole town into a place for stories.

Working alongside local libraries, schools and community partners, we’re bringing reading and writing into streets, shops and public spaces – from a world-record beach book swap to poems in shop windows and a Young People’s Festival.

Because 1 in 8 children in the UK doesn’t own a book of their own – and creative opportunity shouldn’t depend on postcode.

Folkestone is already an art town. Now it’s becoming a town of storytellers.

Online registration has now closed but you can still register on the day!