August in Westmeath libraries
We're celebrating a fantastic summer with over 1,600 kids already signed up for Summer Stars, Exciting Heritage Week events coming August 16-24, and more
We are into the last month of this year’s Summer Stars in Westmeath Libraries, and 2025 has been a great success for us. So far over one thousand six hundred children have signed up, and there is still time to add your, or your child’s name. You can find out more about Summer Stars on our website, or by asking any member of staff on your next visit. And there are plenty more Summer Stars events planned in our libraries.
We also celebrate Heritage Week this month, bringing together communities, families, organisations, cultural institutions, academics and enthusiasts to build awareness about the value of heritage and support its conservation. This year it takes place from Saturday 16th to Sunday 24th of August. We have exhibitions, talks and more on in our libraries.
Read on for our full events listing for August 2025
Treasure Hunt at Athlone Library
09 Jun 2025 to 31 Aug 2025
As part of our Summer Stars activities, Athlone Library is hosting a hunt for pirate coins in the children’s library!
Simply ask at the desk to collect your map and get a head start in the search for gold!
Makey makey workshop
A hands-on workshop where participants will craft their own cardboard guitar, and then learn how to make it play sounds using A MaKey MaKey device. This is a STEAM workshop which combines art and technology, and teaches participants to design and build using a MaKey MaKey device. Suitable for ages 7 - 9 years. Booking essential. Part of Westmeath Libraries Summer Stars programme of events.
Movie Morning
Moate Library 07 Aug 2025 - 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM
Join us in Moate for a special children’s film screening as part of our Summer Stars events. Please register in advance as space is limited.
Children's Book Clinic
Aidan Heavey Library, Athlone 07 Aug 2025 - 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Is your child stuck in a reading rut, re-reading Harry Potter for the 5th time? Or have you a reluctant reader, who's not sure where to start their reading journey? If so, why not visit Dr. Lorna's book clinic. Open for drop-in appointments from 2-3 pm - No need to book in advance.
Baby Book Club and Toddler Group
Mullingar Library 08 Aug 2025 | 15 Aug 2025 | 22 Aug 2025 | 29 Aug 2025
Join us in Mullingar Library every Friday morning from 10am - 11am for our Baby Book Club and Toddler group. All are welcome and there is no booking required.
Kind Kids Club - Summer Stars
Orla from Kind Kids Club will be here to introduce you to the world of wellbeing and mindfulness. She’ll show children how to relax their minds and to understand and express their thoughts and feelings through a wide range of fun activities. For ages 7 - 10. Booking required. Part of our Summer Stars programme of events.






LEGO Free Play
Mullingar Library 09 Aug 2025 | 16 Aug 2025 | 23 Aug 2025 | 30 Aug 2025
We supply the LEGO, you create what you want! Join us in Mullingar Library from 10:30am to 11:30am for a LEGO Free Play Session. Booking is required and all children must be accompanied by an adult. Suitable for age 5+
Toddler Storytime
Aidan Heavey, Athlone 09 Aug 2025 - 11:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Join us in Athlone Library for some Toddler Storytime. Storytime is free but booking essential. When reserving a space one ticket is needed per group only. Ticket can be booked in adults name.
Knit & Natter Craft Group
Moate Library 11 Aug 2025 | 18 Aug 2025 | 25 Aug 2025
Join us in Moate library every Monday from 10:30am to 12:30pm for Knit & Natter. We have a lovely knitting group who meet in our meeting room. Bring your own craft and share ideas and inspiration with other like minded people.
Patchwork and Needlecraft Group
Mullingar Library 11 Aug 2025 | 18 Aug 2025 | 25 Aug 2025
The patchwork and needlecraft group meet in Mullingar Library every Monday at 1pm. Bring along your projects and share ideas. New members always welcome but please note that materials are not provided.
For more information, contact 0449332161 or email mgarlib@westmeathcoco.ie
A Journey Through Time in Print - Newspaper Exhibition
Mullingar Library 11 Aug 2025 to 24 Aug 2025
What was in the local and national news 20, 50 and 100 years ago? An exhibition of local and national newspapers adverts, headlines and stories, highlighting the invaluable Irish Newspaper Archive, which all library members can access for free on site in their local library. All welcome during library opening hours, no booking needed.
Baby & Toddler Group
Moate Library 12 Aug 2025 | 19 Aug 2025 | 26 Aug 2025
Join us every Tuesday at Moate Library where you can meet other parents and carers with babies and small children to relax and chat together while the children play. The group is self-sufficient and there is a selection of suitable toys and hand-picked books available. All are welcome, no need to book just pop in anytime between 10am -12pm.
Story-time Monster Doodle
Moate Library 12 Aug 2025 - 10:30 AM to 11:30 AM
Book a spot for our Story-time Monster Doodle. All ages welcome to our morning of story-time and drawing!
Advice on your device
Moate Library : 12 Aug 2025 | 19 Aug 2025 | 26 Aug 2025 - 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Castlepollard Library: 13 Aug 2025 | 20 Aug 2025 | 27 Aug 2025 - 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Mullingar Library: 13 Aug 2025 | 20 Aug 2025 | 27 Aug 2025 - 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Aidan Heavey, Athlone: 13 Aug 2025 20 Aug 2025 | 27 Aug 2025 - 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Ask our resident tech guru questions on how to download and join Westmeath libraries free online resources as well as any common IT problems. No need to book, just drop in and we'll do our best to help.
Ultimate Hogwarts Experience
Calling all Harry Potter fans! Join us to delve into the world of Harry Potter, where we sort you into your Hogwarts house, brew some deadly potions, create our own wands and hunt for Horcruxes in the library! Suitable for ages 7 - 12 years, booking is essential. Part of Westmeath Libraries Summer Stars programme of events.
Aidan Heavey Library, Athlone Wednesday 13th August, 10.15AM - 11.45AM
Movie Morning
Castlepollard Library 13 Aug 2025 - 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Join us for a cosy movie morning at Castlepollard Library. Suitable for ages 3+
Shine Peer Support Group
Aidan Heavey Library, Athlone : 13 Aug 2025 - 1:30 PM to 3:00 PM | 27 Aug 2025 - 1:30 PM to 3:00 PM
Shine Peer Support Group for people with lived experience of mental health challenges. The group will meet fortnightly from 1.30 - 3pm.
This group is open to all those who experience mental health difficulties and provides a safe, confidential space for people to share their experiences. The group will be facilitated by a peer facilitator who has the expertise by experience of living with mental health difficulties as well as years of experience in recovery and supporting others in their journey.
Shine peer support groups are recovery focused spaces where people can discuss some of the challenges, they have faced in their recovery journey, feel understood and supported by those who have had similar experiences, and share tips, knowledge, and skills that have worked for them.
If you are interested in joining the group, please contact Jason at midlands@shine.ie or 086 8525281 to have your questions answered or to sign up.
Arts & Crafts Hour
Mullingar Library 14 Aug 2025 - 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Join us in Mullingar Library for some Arts & Crafts fun! Suitable for age 5 - 9 years. Booking is required and all children must be accompanied by an adult.
Breastfeeding meet-up
Mullingar Library 15 Aug 2025 | 29 Aug 2025 - 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Join us in Mullingar Library from 11am to 12noon for a breastfeeding support group, led by a local Public Health Nurse. Contact Colleen on 0862540950 for more details.
Summerstars Crafternoon
Aidan Heavey Library, Athlone 15 Aug 2025 - 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Come join us for an arts and crafts session in Athlone Library on Friday 15th August from 3pm -4pm. Suitable for children aged 8- 12 years. Booking is essential.
LEGO Blockbusters - Free Play
Aidan Heavey Library, Athlone 16 Aug 2025 - 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM
LEGO Blockbusters is a free play session. These sessions will be held on 3rd Saturday of every month. All children should be accompanied by an adult. No booking required.
Movie Matinee at Athlone Library
Aidan Heavey Library, Athlone 18 Aug 2025 - 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM
Join us at the Aidan Heavey Library Athlone for a screening of Moana the movie. The film is set in ancient Polynesia and tells the story of Moana, the strong-willed daughter of a chief of a coastal village, who is chosen by the ocean itself to reunite a mystical relic with the goddess Te Fiti. When a blight strikes her island, Moana sets sail in search of Maui, a legendary demigod, in hopes of returning the relic to Te Fiti and saving her people. This film is rated PG and suitable for ages 6 and up.
Booking essential as space is limited
'If These Walls Could Talk' Exhibition
Aidan Heavey Library, Athlone 18 Aug 2025 to 23 Aug 2025
A photographic and audio presentation on Athlone's historic town walls, open during Library opening hours. No need to book.
From the Garden to the Jar
Celebrate National Heritage Week (August 16th–24th) by reconnecting with the rich food traditions that tie us to our landscapes, our communities, and each other.
Join us for a free biodiversity workshop, designed especially for older adults. Discover traditional food preservation techniques many of us grew up with such as pickling, drying, and making jams and preserves and learn how they support biodiversity today.
Anna Brown of Big Sky Flowers will share her expertise on using local, seasonal, and heritage varieties, and offer inspiring ways to keep these traditions alive.
This workshop is a wonderful opportunity to:
✅ Learn practical tips and modern twists on classic methods.
✅ Share your own stories and food traditions.
✅ Strengthen your connection to local ecosystems and seasonal rhythms.
✅ Celebrate community, biodiversity, and the flavours of the past.
Free event | Refreshments provided | Booking essential
Storytime and Sing-along - August 19th
Mullingar Library 19 Aug 2025 - 11:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Join us for a storytime and sing-along, from Julia Donaldson's 'A Pocketful of Songs', in Mullingar Library from 11am-11:30am. Suitable for ages 4-6 years. Booking required.
Nature Inspired Storytime
Aidan Heavey Library, Athlone 19 Aug 2025 - 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
To celebrate Heritage week we are having a special nature inspired storytime, where children can learn the relaxing benefits of being in nature.
Suitable for ages 5- 8 years | Booking essential
'The No 1 Battery and the Lost Batteries of Athlone'
Aidan Heavey Library, Athlone 19 Aug 2025 - 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM
Join us for a Heritage Week illustrated talk on the No. 1 battery and lost batteries of Athlone, with local historian Gearóid O'Brien.
The talk will highlight the work of the Athlone No 1 Battery Heritage Group and the ongoing conservation and preservation work on the site, which is the last surviving example of 8 batteries built in the early 19th century to defend the town from the threat of Napoleonic invasion.
Event is bookable at the library desk or by phone 09064 42157 or email athlib@westmeathcoco.ie
Three Unique Westmeath Archive Collections and their Digitisation
Mullingar Library 19 Aug 2025 - 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Martin Fagan former Archivist at Strokestown House, will discuss a project currently underway to digitise material from three private collections held by Westmeath Libraries. These collections include Late 18th – 20th Century material relating to the Clibborn family, one of the principal Quaker families that settled in Moate during the Cromwellian Plantation. Also being digitised are a Late 18th – early 19th century book of maps of lands of Thomas Nugent of Dunore, Co Westmeath and an illustrated book entitled Insects at Lincoln Jail that was compiled by Sean Milroy during his imprisonment in Lincoln Jail for his involvement in the 1916 Rising.
This event is part of the Heritage Week 2025 program of events. - No need to book.
Unveiling Her Story: A Journey into Historical Women's Mental Health through the Life of Julia Leonard
Mullingar Library 19 Aug 2025 - 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Join author, musician and psychotherapist Kathleen A Crinion as she shares insights from her new book Her Name Was Julia, which explores the untold story of Julia Leonard, her great-great-grandmother.
In this compelling talk, Kathleen will delve into the complexities of women's mental health in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as seen through Julia’s experiences in St Loman's psychiatric hospital, Mullingar.
Discover the challenges faced by women like Julia—whose strength, resilience, and struggles offer a window into the societal norms and medical practices of her time. This event is a powerful reflection on how history often overlooks the mental health of women, and how personal histories can illuminate broader societal themes.
Design Cú Chulainn’s Shield Art Workshop
Mullingar Library 20 Aug 2025 - 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM
A warrior’s shield was a very important part of their weaponry. A shield protected them from being hurt in battle. Warriors decorated their shields with bright colours, patterns, swirls, spirals and circles. Design your own, as part of this art workshop event for ages 8 to 12, in celebration of Heritage Week 2025.
Booking required, all participants must be accompanied by an adult.
Robotics Coding workshop
Learn how to code a VEX Basebot Robot and watch it move on it’s own. This robotics code for beginners workshop teaches participants to program a robot using VEX robotics code. Watch as the robot moves across the floor using code you have created! Suitable for ages 10 - 12 years. Booking essential. Part of Westmeath Libraries Summer Stars programme of events.
Lego Create and Build
Moate Library 21 Aug 2025 - 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Book a spot for our LEGO Create & Build. We supply the Lego. You create! This is a Summerstars event. This is part of our Summer Stars activities.
The Royal Irish Academy Library Westmeath Collection
Mullingar Library 21 Aug 2025 - 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM
Westmeath Library, in conjunction with Westmeath Archaeological and Historical Society, are delighted to host this lunch time lecture on the sources for the county's history available in the RIA library HQ in Dawson Street, Dublin, as part of our Heritage Week events. Booking not required.
The Royal Irish Academy Library is one of Ireland’s premier research libraries. The collection contains major manuscript, book, pamphlet and drawings collections. The Academy’s founding members were particularly interested in Irish antiquities, history mythology, language and genealogy, which influenced the development of the Library collection. As a result, the RIA collection contains a wealth of unique resources for local historians. Members of the public are welcome to register as readers, free of charge, and to access these resources in the reading room. This presentation will give an overview of the collection, especially highlighting items connected to county Westmeath, and explain how to access our library services.
Emma Rothwell:. She holds a Masters in Library and Information Studies and worked in UCD, Maynooth University, and the Chester Beatty libraries before being appointed to her role in RIA in 2023. She is Assistant Librarian in the Royal Irish Academy.
Adult Book Clubs
Castlepollard Library 21 Aug 2025 - 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Adult Book Club meeting in Castlepollard Library on the third Thursday of every month at 6.30pm. New members welcome, no need to book.
Moate Library 27 Aug 2025 - 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM
Moate Library Adult Book Club meets the last Wednesday of every month at 11am. Please contact the branch for more information on 0906481888 or moatelib@westmeathcoco.ie
Moate Library 28 Aug 2025 - 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM
Moate Library has set up an adult book club for you to take time out just for you! We will handpick some easy reads to get you started. Takes place the last Thursday of every month at 11am. No need to book.
Mullingar Library 28 Aug 2025 - 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Mullingar Library Book Club meet on the last Thursday of every month from 6:30pm - 7:30pm. New members always welcome. No need to book.
The Argentine Emigration Oral History Project - A Westmeath Perspective
Mullingar Library 21 Aug 2025 - 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM
In the years between 1830 and 1870 about 30,000 Irish people emigrated to Argentina. Of those, it is believed that about 60% were from Westmeath, Longford and part of Offaly, with Westmeath having the largest number of the three. Emigration continued into the twentieth century, though at a lower level.
An oral history project on the subject is currently underway in Westmeath and Longford. Join Oral Historian Adrian Roche of The History Trail for an illustrated talk on this project.
Part of Westmeath Libraries celebration of Heritage Week 2025. No need to book.
Plant Swap
Aidan Heavey Library, Athlone 23 Aug 2025 - 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Athlone library are celebrating Heritage Week with a plant swap on Saturday August 23rd. Indoor and outdoor plants can be exchanged, along with seeds for our Seed Library. 10 am-1 pm no need to book.
Arts & Crafts
Castlepollard Library 27 Aug 2025 - 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Join us for a fun and creative Arts & Crafts workshop at Castlepollard Library on Wednesday, August 27th at 11:00am. Suitable for ages 6-9 years. Booking essential!