A Creative Health and Wellbeing Hub at the former Sanderstead library building.
The Story Sanctuary is our new community space — built by and for us — a creative place where people can come together to connect, swap skills, make things, move, play and more.
We believe stories, in all their forms, help us understand each other, and it’s proven that being creative helps us stay well.
With a range of activities, workshops and events for everyone from young to old: art and crafts, gardening and yoga, food and craft markets, social gatherings, and moments of calm.
A welcoming spot for everyone — including our neurodivergent and LGBTQIA+ communities — a kind, creative place where everyone can feel at ease. Whether you love words, pictures, music, or simply good company, there’s space for you here.
How did The Story Sanctuary come to be?
In 2024, Croydon Council took the decision to close four libraries and the buildings were offered to the community (charities, non-profits, residents groups), to run as community hubs. There were about 8 bids submitted for Sanderstead library, all very different, which were scored by the council across various metrics and the highest scoring bids were shared with the local community to get their input.
The Story Sanctuary proposal (submitted by Jill, a Sanderstead resident) scored highest and was the most popular with the local community; it was the only bid that aimed to wholly retain the building for community use. You can read the original proposal here.
The building is currently operated by A Collective, Jill’s non-profit, under a temporary ‘Licence to Occupy’ so we can start to build our creative programme and get everyone involved in our plans.
We will be incorporating a new organisation, ready to negotiate a 25-year lease with Croydon Council.
As the old proverb says:
it takes a village…
We are also busy forming a team from management through to creative and health practitioners to volunteers of all kinds.
If you’d like to get involved, please check out:
Alternatively, please get in touch.
