The World of Glass to temporarily host the St Helens Archive Service to enable next stage of the Gamble Building restoration
St Helens Archive service will temporarily relocate to The World of Glass to enable the next stage of restoration on the Gamble Building.
Article date: 25 November 2025
The Archive, part of St Helens Borough Council's Library Service, collects, preserves and provides access to unique historic materials that relate to different aspects of life across the borough. The service holds vital Council records as well as fascinating material relating to areas, companies, organisations, people, and events across St Helens Borough.
Formally established in 1974, the Archive is currently housed in the basement of the Gamble Building and has remained open to the public (by appointment) following the closure of the main building in 2017.
In 2021, the service achieved Archive Service Accreditation, the UK standard for archive services which looks at how services acquire, preserve, and provide access to their collections.
The relocation will be carried out by specialist heritage relocation experts from leading UK removal company Harrow Green. To facilitate the relocation, the service will close to the public at 5:00pm Friday 28 November before re-opening on Monday 5 January 2026 at The World of Glass.
The relocation will also provide an opportunity to assess the future needs of the service, with the Archive Service team working closely with the Gamble Building project team to inform detailed plans for the new purpose-built Archive that will be situated within the restored Gamble Building.
Councillor Sue Murphy MBE, Cabinet Member for Localities, Culture and Heritage said:
"This is an exciting move for St Helens Archive Service that will ultimately make this outstanding facility more visible and accessible to St Helens residents and visitors. It also marks the next significant step in the restoration of the historic Gamble Building, in which the Archive will return to a new purpose-built facility that will preserve and showcase the history and heritage of our Borough for generations to come."
Sarah Taylor, Executive Director, The World of Glass said:
"As an organisation, The World of Glass understands the importance of celebrating and preserving the heritage and traditions of our Borough that is why we are delighted to play a part in this exciting next step for the St Helens Archive. We're looking forward to welcoming visitors to explore the history of St Helens as the temporary home of the Archive, and to seeing the landmark Gamble Building brought back into use for the public."
The Archive Service will be closed from Friday 28 November 2025 at 5pm and will re-open on Monday 5 January 2026 at the World of Glass. To contact the Archive Service, find out what records are held and how they can be accessed, visit www.sthelens.gov.uk/archives or call 01744 671748.