Occupying the former St. Ringan's Church on Lower Hillhead in Lerwick, Shetland Library promotes the strong literary traditions of the northern isles, allied to music and storytelling by providing access to books, newspapers and other media. It is operated by Shetland Islands Council and lies at the centre of a network of six community libraries, eight school libraries, a housebound service and a mobile service comprising two vans (known as Elizabeth and Annette) which travel around the mainland of Shetland and the islands of Yell, Unst, Fetlar, Whalsay and Skerries.
The B-listed St. Ringan's United Free Church comprises a grey sandstone Gothic structure, with buff sandstone dressings and a squat crenellated central tower, which was the work of R.G. Sykes of Liverpool in 1885-86. It was converted to include a mezzanine floor, with rolling shelving allowing space to be available for events, such as frequent readings and book launches. The library moved in 2002 from a two-storey building just to the north, on the opposite corner of Union Street, which was built by Zetland County Council in 1966, and shared with Shetland Museum and Archives.
