The Clay Farm Centre in the south of Cambridge hosts a community centre, a branch of Cambridgeshire library and a café on the ground floor and first floor.

The community centre has five public-use rooms that you can book for events and activities. It has a fully accessible Changing Places facility, and free Wi-Fi throughout.

The café is managed and run by the Royal Voluntary Service (RVS). It provides affordable simple refreshments and has indoor and outdoor seating.

Trumpington Medical Centre is on the second floor of the building, and the top two floors are residential accommodation.

Opening hours

The centre and library are open to the public at the following times:

• Monday: 9.30am to 1pm
  • Library self-service kiosks available until 5pm
• Tuesday: 9.30am to 5pm
• Wednesday: 9.30am to 3pm
  • Library self-service kiosks available until 5pm
  • No access to some library facilities between 3pm and 5pm
• Thursday: 9.30am to 7pm
• Friday: Closed
• Saturday: 9.30am to 1pm
• Sunday and bank holidays: Closed

You can reserve the public-use areas when the centre is open and on weekday evenings.

Café

The café is usually open at the following times:

• Monday to Friday: 9.30am to 2.30pm
• Saturday: 10am to midday

RVS are trying different opening times to establish a pattern that works for visitors to the centre as well as staff and volunteers.

Public transport and parking

The centre is a short walk from the Trumpington Park & Ride and from the guided bus stop on Foster Road.

There are covered racks for 30 bikes and uncovered racks around the centre and square for a further 50 bikes.

The centre has five disabled parking spaces. There are 18 parking spaces on Hobson Square – these are free to use but have a two-hour maximum stay. The area is patrolled by parking enforcement officers.

• Directions and public transport [PDF, 0.2MB]

Library

The Clay Farm library is spread across the ground floor and first floor. There is space to browse the shelves and read or work quietly.

The library has eight computers available for public use – you can just turn up or you can  reserve a library computer if you want to use one.

One of the computers has a scanner, and there is also a printer and photocopier.

Some of the facilities will not be available during self-service hours.

Events and activities

The centre hosts many groups and activities every week. The programme of events includes contact details for each activity.

You can hire a room for your event – find out more below about the available spaces and how to book.

• Programme of events: week beginning 27 March 2023 [PDF, 0.1MB]
• Programme of events: week beginning 20 March 2023 [PDF, 0.2MB]

Public-use rooms

As well as the library and café, the centre has an array of spaces available for hire in normal circumstances.

The rooms and public-use areas are available at the following times:

• Monday to Thursday: 9am to 10pm
• Fridays 9am to 8pm
• Saturday: 9am to 1pm

We can accommodate some reservations outside of these times. Contact us if you are interested in hiring a space at the centre.

The Eva Hartree Hall (204m²) on the ground floor can be split into two smaller sections of 135m² and 68m². It is ideal for large groups, exercise classes, performances and conferences. The hall is equipped with tiered seating if required.

The Tillie Cuthbert Room (56m²) on the ground floor is a multi-use room with an enclosed patio space. It has an enclosed patio area so is ideal for children’s activities, as well as for classes and meetings of all kinds. The room has tea-making facilities.

The Baker Studio (72m²) on the first-floor is a flexible space that can be used for classes and meetings of any kind. The room has tea-making facilities.

The Byron Room (30m²) and Chaplen Room (27m²) are first-floor meeting rooms. The dividing wall between them can be rolled back to create a single, larger room. The Byron Room has tea-making facilities.

We also have circulation areas with seating, which are ideal for informal meetings.

• Booking form [PDF, 0.4MB]
• Venue hire: Regular and commercial bookings [PDF, 0.6MB]
• Venue hire: Private bookings [PDF, 0.3MB]
• Conditions of hire [PDF, 0.2MB]

Communities and people

Our ‘communities and people’ video features the centre.

Centre management

The Clay Farm Centre is a joint venture between us and the county council. It is overseen through a partnering agreement.

We manage the community facility, library and café on behalf of the partnership, including employing the staff and providing all the services.