Manor House Library is partnering with the University of the Arts London (UAL) to explore how we design community spaces and events when we put connection and care at the centre.

Between January and March 2026, two teams of graduate students studying Service Design will work with Manor House Library to create something new for our community. The students will take inspiration from the book All About Love: New Visions by bell hooks, an influential American author and thinker who explored love not just as a romantic feeling, but as an active practice of care, respect, and genuine connection between people. Her work asks us to think about how these values can guide the way we treat each other and build communities.

Students in design programs typically learn to create services and events that are efficient, innovative, or solve practical problems. This project asks them to think differently. Instead of just asking, ‘Does this work?’, they’re also asking, ‘Does this help people connect? Does it deepen care and respect? Does it serve our community’s actual needs?’.

The project will occur in stages over the next few months: In January, students began researching the library and its community, and we met the teams to tell them a bit about Lewisham and our library service. In February, student teams will visit Manor House Library to learn more about the space, talk with staff and community members, and understand what the area needs. By mid-February, they’ll share their early ideas and get feedback from library staff. In March, they’ll continue developing and put their projects to a practical test.

We’re working alongside Catford Library, which is also hosting student teams, and this project is happening simultaneously with communities in Germany, Mexico, and China. While the framework is international, what the students create for Manor House Library will be designed specifically for our context and community. We don’t know yet what this will look like. The students might design a community conversation event, a poetry night, a creative workshop, an ongoing activity, or something else entirely. Whatever they create will be shaped by what they learn from spending time here and from placing love at the heart of their design.

In February and March, you might see student teams at the library observing how people use the space, chatting with visitors (with permission), or testing out their ideas. We’ll share updates as the project develops and let you know when there’s something to participate in.