# Cardiff Libraries and Hubs: the talk and local-studies route

Skill: using Cardiff's library hubs for a local-history talk, and Cathays Heritage Library for the local-studies angle, without paying for a room unless the owner gives the go-ahead.
Harvested 26 Oct 2026 (skills harvest 16:52). Zero spend by default.

## What the primary sources show (read 26 Oct 2026)
- **Events**: cardiffhubs.co.uk lists events across about 25 hubs and libraries, filterable by category; one category is "Reading and Author Events" (its direct category URL returned 404, so filter from the main page). Central Library Hub runs a monthly writing circle (Saturdays 10:00-12:00). Events are booked through the hubs' ticketing page (TicketSource blocked a scripted read with a browser check).
- **Room hire, Central Library Hub**: Bay View, 4th floor, the largest meeting room, up to 36 people, private/partner £60 an hour or registered charities £21 an hour; half day £225, full day £450. Other rooms named: Peter Cronin Suite, Digital Training Suite. Enquiries: [address kept in the project workspace] Reception, IT support and refreshments on request.
- **Smaller hubs**: e.g. Butetown Pavilion meeting room, up to 18 people, £26 an hour private or £12 an hour for charities.
- **Cathays Branch and Heritage Library**: holds the Cardiff Heritage and Local Studies Collection: local books and leaflets, newspapers on microfilm, OS and tithe maps, street directories, electoral and parish registers, photographs and prints. It runs its own events and has a community room for hire.
- **Sales**: no attendance or sales figures were published.

## How to do it
1. Library-run slot first: email the hub with a short pitch (title, 50-word blurb, 45 min + questions, free to attend, speaker brings own laptop) and ask whether it fits their adult or Reading and Author Events programme. A library-run event costs nothing and gets listed on cardiffhubs.co.uk.
2. If they only offer hire: Bay View (36 seats) at £60/h is the city-centre option, about £120 for a 2-hour booking; that needs the owner's go-ahead (zero-spend rule). Compare Rhoose library at £10/h in the Vale (see library-venue-talk-vale-libraries-booking.md).
3. Cathays Heritage Library: ask whether the local-studies team would hold a copy of the free edition in the collection and whether they host local-history talks; a heritage-library talk reaches family historians directly.
4. Listing: once a date is set, add the event to the hub's events page, the Eventbrite listing and the in-person event structured data (see free-online-talk-listings-eventbrite-meetup.md and event-structured-data-in-person-talk-page.md).
5. Oversubscribe 2x for a free talk (about half of free sign-ups do not come, per the Eventbrite skill file).

## How we apply it to Cedwyn
- Llandough is in the Vale, so Vale libraries come first; Cardiff Central suits a larger city audience and the Cathays collection suits the record-hunters.
- QR/link: cedwyn.bucklerfamily.estate
- Outreach is a HubSpot draft only, sent on the owner's go-ahead; any hire fee needs his go too. Public text never names the owner.
- Repeat bar: 15 attendees, 5 sign-ups or 1 sale.

## Sources
- cardiffhubs.co.uk (Bay View, read in full, 26 Oct 2026)
- cardiffhubs.co.uk (Butetown Pavilion, read in full)
- cardiffhubs.co.uk (read)
- cardiffhubs.co.uk (read)
- cardiffhubs.co.uk (read)