Milton Keynes City Council have announced plans for significant upgrades to the city’s Central Library.

The £3.6M project is intended to address essential infrastructure issues, with the City Council stating these include making the building watertight and operational for the long term.

Key facilities will also be repositioned and expanded to better accommodate the needs of families, children and adult learners.

Once complete, the renovations will intend to relocate the children’s library to the ground floor, making it easier to access for families and carers, and reconfigure event spaces to create additional classrooms for adult education, meeting growing demand.

The plans also intend to replace the Central Library roof and restore the lift, improving access for residents with mobility challenges.

While many other councils have closed libraries since 2010, with recent analysis showing since 2016 around 20% of libraries in England have been closed, Milton Keynes City Council’s leadership have said they have invested in libraries, opening two new ones and improving others.

Councillor Lauren Townsend, Cabinet Member for Resources and Customer Experience, said, “While many places in England have seen libraries close due to shrinking council budgets, Labour Milton Keynes City Council continues to keep them open and invest in our library service.

“Labour’s £3.6M investment in Central Library will ensure this vital resource continues to serve Milton Keynes residents in the future. Libraries are at the heart of our community, providing essential services like family activities, education for all ages and spaces for working.

“From improving access for parents with buggies to expanding classrooms for adult learners, these upgrades to our Central Library in CMK will make a real difference in people’s lives.”

MK Dons were beaten 6-3 by Newport County in an eventful game in South Wales in which two Exiles players scored hat-tricks.

Newport had raced into a 4-0 lead in the first half when Bryn Morris scored a hat-trick and Bobby Kamwa scored a further strike.

Luke Offord had made it 4-1 in first half stoppage time only for Kamwa to grab a fifth that seemingly put the game out of the Dons’ reach.

MK Dons got the game back to 5-3 as Joe White and Offord reduced the deficit, but any hope of a previously unlikely comeback dissipated when Kamwa completed his hat-trick, making it 6-3 and sealing the points for the hosts at Rodney Parade.

Defeat drops the Dons to 9th in the League Two table, although they are a point off the play-offs in a congested table and have at least one game in hand on several of the teams ahead of them.

Having suffered a disappointing reverse at Gillingham, MK Dons had hoped for some joy in their last away game in 2024 and their first in several weeks after recent weather-induced postponements of trips to Fleetwood and Barrow. The Dons had been hoping for success against a Newport side that had failed to win any of their previous six games.

The Dons had seen a few promising moves fail to deliver in the opening stages, but a mistake in their defensive ranks lead to Newport opening the scoring in the 12th minute.

Laurence Maguire lost possession a few yards outside his own box, and having won the ball off Maguire, Morris was able to cut inside and drill a fine curling shot into the back of the net.

Just four minutes later, the Dons’ defence was breached again. Luke Jephcott saw an initial shot from Kamwa’s pass denied by Tom McGill but Morris was there to convert the rebound.

Newport then scored again, making it 3 goals in 11 minutes. Nico Lawrence’s pass was intercepted and Jephcott teed up Kamwa, who duly beat McGill.

MK Dons came close to falling 4-0 down just after the half hour when Cameron Antwi blasted off target from close range.

But the visitors’ miserable first half would see them fall 4-0 down with 36 minutes on the clock. Offord was penalised for handball in the box, and from 12 yards, Morris confirmed his hat-trick by beating McGill with his penalty.

Scott Hogan wafted a shot off target before MK Dons did grab a goal back in first half stoppage time. White’s long free-kick into the box found Offord, who was able to force a header into the Newport net.

Any hopes the Dons had of a comeback were however damaged when they conceded again less than two minutes after the restart. Kamwa eluded Maguire’s attentions before being able to loft his shot above McGill and in to make it 5-1.

With just under 20 minutes to go, MK Dons got what seemed like being a further consolation when Ellis Harrison’s set up work saw the ball bobble for White, who was able to strike home his effort.

Any hopes of a Dons comeback were then seemingly further boosted when they made it 5-3 a few minutes after making it 5-2. Offord was able to prod the ball home after a Tom Carroll free-kick wasn’t fully cleared.

But Newport shut the door on the Dons’ comeback ambitions as Kamwa broke an offside trap before drilling a firm strike beyond McGill’s reach.

That condemned the Dons to back-to-back defeats, if in very different circumstances to their 1-0 loss against Gillingham in their previous contest, as they seek to bounce back when they host fellow play-off contenders Notts County on Boxing Day.

Northampton’s final home game of 2024 would see the Cobblers endure a 5-0 mauling by Charlton Athletic.

Greg Docherty’s brace and further strikes by Tyreece Campbell, Miles Leaburn and former Cobbler Danny Hylton made it a painful pre-Christmas game for the Cobblers.

The currently managerless side are now on a run of 1 win in 9 League One games and they will spent Christmas Day two points and one place above the relegation zone, but having played more games than the teams below them.

Northampton had hoped for a positive performance against a midtable Addicks side to bounce back from three goal defeats in league and EFL Trophy.

But the day didn’t get off to a good start for the hosts as they fell behind inside the opening ten minutes. Campbell’s cross wasn’t fully cleared and the ball eventually fell for visiting captain Docherty, who drilled a low shot across Nik Tzanev and in to give the visitors the lead.

Charlton continued to press and they would make it 2-0 three minutes later. Leaburn’s ball forward released Campbell, who eluded the last defender before firing past Tzanev.

The Cobblers’ day got worse in the final ten minutes of the first half, as a Northampton defender could only flick Macauley Gillesphey’s long ball on to Leaburn, who duly drilled a shot home to give Charlton their third.

Northampton had some chances for a consolation with Cameron McGeehan seeing a firm drive just fly wide and the Northern Irishman was later kept out by away keeper Ashley Maynard-Brewer.

But Charlton instead added to the home side’s misery with a fourth goal with just over 20 minutes of the 90 to go, when Luke Berry cut the ball back for Docherty to rifle home his second of the day.

Charlton would grab a fifth in stoppage time, when a cross by substitute Alex Mitchell found fellow arrival Hylton, who found the bottom corner and in the process scored his first goal for the Addicks.

That duly put the seal on a dismal day for the Cobblers, who will be chasing points in their battle to stay up when they visit Reading on Boxing Day.

Luton Town scored a pair of late goals to come from behind and defeat Derby County 2-1 at Kenilworth Road.

The Hatters’ last home game of 2024 nearly ended in defeat when Kayden Jackson’s goal gave the Rams just before the hour and Luton remained behind with 88 minutes on the clock.

But in the final stages, a Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu strike that deflected in off team-mate Tom Holmes gave Luton an equaliser, before Carlton Morris’ shot deflected in to give the Hatters a surprise three points.

Victory means Luton jump ahead of Derby in the Championship table, and they rise up to 14th position in the second tier table ahead of Saturday’s action.

With defeat at Blackburn continuing Luton’s poor away form last time out, the Hatters were hoping to get points on the board in their final home game before Christmas.

The hosts had early opportunities, with Morris heading wide at a free-kick before Tahith Chong was kept out by Derby keeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom.

A tight first half had seen Derby struggle to create opportunities, but in the opening ten minutes of the second half, the Rams did test Thomas Kaminski in the Luton goal when a deflected Jackson strike was kept out by the Belgian.

Ebou Adams then crashed a strike off target, before Luton got much closer to breaking the deadlock when Elijah Adebayo met Tom Krauß’s cross but headed wide.

Just before the hour mark, Derby then broke the deadlock. A passing move down the right flank picked out Kane Wilson, who found Jackson for a header that he duly looped across the keeper and into the back of the net.

Luton were very close to a quick equaliser when Zetterstrom tipped away Morris’ header, but a game that began to open up saw Derby come close again, as Kenzo Goudmijn saw a first time strike denied by Kaminski.

With the minutes running out, Luton seemed to be running out of ideas, leading to some tension among the home ranks.

But with 89 minutes on the clock, an opportunity opened up that Luton took full advantage of. Cauley Woodrow’s free-kick was half cleared out to Mpanzu, who saw a first time drive land in the back of the net. Replays show it took a significant deflection off Mpanzu’s team-mate Holmes, giving the former Reading man the credit for the goal with some sources, but either way, Luton were level.

As the game moved into stoppage time, Luton then found the way through again. Another Luton free-kick was again not fully cleared, and this time the ball ricocheted into the path of Adebayo, who saw a strike kept out by Zetterstrom. The loose ball however fell the way of Morris, who saw a strike hit the arm of Derby defender Curtis Nelson and divert into the top corner, winning the game for the hosts.

After picking up the three points, Luton will now seek to turn attention on improving their away form, as they face a Boxing Day trip to play Bristol City before wrapping up 2024 at Swansea next weekend.