Festive opening hours

While most people are enjoying their festive break, for many council workers, Christmas can be business as usual. Care workers will still be providing care for those most in need and highways teams will be on standby to ensure roads are gritted and any emergency repairs undertaken.

Main council venues will have reduced opening hours over the festive period. Customer services opening hours, both over the phone and face to face, are as follows: December 22 – 9.30am-5pm, December 23 – 8.30am-4.30pm, December 24-27 – closed, December 28 – 8.30am-5pm, December 29 – 9.30am-5pm, December 30 – 8.30am-4.30pm, December 31-January 2 – closed. Normal opening resumes on Tuesday 3 January.

Contact details for individual services are available on the Council’s website: www.darlington.gov.uk. Visitors to the customer contact centre are asked to arrive at least ten minutes before closing time. The centre can also be contacted by email on [email protected].

On Christmas Eve, the Dolphin Centre will open at 8am and close at 4.30pm. The Centre will reopen at 10am on Tuesday 27 and close at 4.30pm. From Wednesday 28 until Friday 30, the centre will open from 6.30am to 4.30pm. The centre will be open from 8am to 4.30pm on New Year’s Eve. The pool and gym will close 30 minutes before the centre closes. The Centre will be closed on New Year’s Day and will reopen from 10am to 4.30pm on January 2. Normal opening hours resume the following day.

Darlington Library will close at 1pm on Christmas Eve and reopen at 9am Wednesday December 28. It will close at 1pm on New Year’s Eve and reopen Tuesday January 3.

Cockerton Library will be open 9am-1pm on Christmas Eve, reopening at 9am December 28 and 9am-1pm New Year’s Eve; reopening at 2pm on Tuesday 3 January.

Head of Steam is open 11am-3.30pm on Christmas Eve, and reopens on December 28. It will be closed on New Year’s Day, and reopens on January 4, with normal winter opening hours (Wednesday to Sunday 11am – 3.30pm).

The Civic Theatre box office in the Cornmill Shopping Centre will close at 2pm on Christmas Eve, reopening at 10am on Tuesday January 3. The phone lines will not be staffed during this period.