Where to buy used books in Nottingham

Updated 01/10/2026

Look for Nottingham's second-hand books in its charity shops. In the city centre, Bookwise on Goose Gate in Hockley and the Oxfam book branch on Market Street are roughly 600 yards apart. From there the hunt spreads to Beeston in Broxtowe borough to the south-west, Arnold and Calverton in Gedling borough to the north, Ilkeston across the Derbyshire border in Erewash to the west, and West Bridgford over the Trent, which comes under Rushcliffe borough rather than the city council. Prices here are in pounds sterling.

The PBFA's directory of bookshops lists none in or around Nottingham, and Jermy & Westerman on Mansfield Road, established in 1978, had already joined Nottingham City of Literature's roll of the city's lost bookshops by May 2020. What the area does have is a cluster of book-led charity branches: three Oxfam bookshops, the Music for Everyone charity's Bookwise, and a Children's Society bookshop that opened out in Calverton in May 2025.

Oxfam's shop pages ask you to contact each branch for its hours, so phone before a long trip. Bookwise, the hospice shops in West Bridgford and Beeston, both air ambulance shops and the Lady Bay Brocante publish their own hours or dates.

Spot map

The best spots

Charity bookshop (Music for Everyone)

Bookwise

10 Goose Gate, Nottingham NG1 1FF

A charity bookshop at 10 Goose Gate in Hockley whose takings go to Music for Everyone, a Nottingham music-education charity, and whose own page sums up the premises as small on the outside, big on the inside. Its notice of normal opening hours for 2026 sits beside a price guide of £2 for a typical paperback novel and £3 upwards for non-fiction. The same page boasts an impressive stock of second-hand sheet music and CDs, and a March 2025 post there announced a large donated collection of classical CDs going on sale in batches. Bank holiday Mondays are trading days too.

Hours: Mon–Thu 11am–4pm, Fri–Sat 11am–5pmWebsite

Oxfam Books & Music

Oxfam Books & Music Nottingham

19 Market St, Nottingham NG1 6HX

Oxfam's city-centre branch for books and music stands at 19 Market Street, just off Old Market Square, and its shop page promises books across every subject, DVDs and music, Penguin classics, indie vinyl, jazz on the stereo and a leather sofa to sink into. Oxfam's careers site was advertising for a full-time bookshop manager for this Market Street shop, with applications closing on 5 October 2026. Oxfam's page leaves opening times to a phone call on 0115 934 3497.

Website

Oxfam Books & Music

Oxfam Books & Music Beeston

58 High Rd, Beeston, Nottingham NG9 2JP

In Beeston, in the borough of Broxtowe, Oxfam's books and music branch at 58 High Road sits close to the University of Nottingham, and its page talks up a deeper book stock than the average charity shop: current novels and hobby titles, university-level and specialist subjects, plus a few rare or collectable copies. Classical, rock and pop vinyl and sheet music make up the music side. Its Instagram account showed off a Hidden Gems window of the shop's best books in June 2026, and a volunteer signing off for the summer in July 2026 promised the branch was still open and selling. Donations go in through the rear entrance.

Website

Oxfam Books & Music

Oxfam Bookshop West Bridgford

12 Central Ave, West Bridgford, Nottingham NG2 5GR

Across the Trent in West Bridgford, part of Rushcliffe borough, Oxfam's bookshop at 12 Central Avenue has traded since 2004 and sold online since early 2009, its shop page says. Music and film get a dedicated floor, sheet music and rare records count among its specialities, and the book department leans on contemporary fiction. Its Instagram post for Pride 2026, on 29 June, said the doors open on all seven days, and in July 2026 it was already stocking 2027 diaries and calendars; the number for checking times is 0115 982 6951.

Website

All spots by type

Charity shops

Charity shop (Nottinghamshire Hospice)

Nottinghamshire Hospice Sherwood

583 Mansfield Rd, Sherwood, Nottingham NG5 2JN

Two miles up Mansfield Road in Sherwood, near the Winchester Street junction, Nottinghamshire Hospice runs a community shop whose page calls it one of the largest charity shops in Sherwood and lists books, CDs, DVDs and vinyl with the clothes and homeware. A TARDIS serves as the changing room. On 5 May 2026 the hospice announced on Facebook that the shop had started opening on Sundays from 10am to 4pm, while its shop page still gives weekdays 9am to 5pm, Saturdays 9am to 4:30pm and Sundays closed, so ring 0115 962 1773 before a Sunday trip. The entrance is up steep steps with handrails.

Website

Charity shop (Oxfam)

Oxfam Shop West Bridgford

23 Tudor Square, West Bridgford, Nottingham NG2 6BT

Oxfam's general shop in Tudor Square, West Bridgford (Rushcliffe), sells donated books with its clothes, accessories and homewares, its shop page says, plus Fairtrade food and greetings cards. It's about 140 yards from the charity's Central Avenue bookshop, a short hop between them. On Instagram in May 2025 the shop was pointing customers to its vintage, festival and football shirts. Oxfam leaves opening times to a call on 0115 981 1790.

Website

Charity shop (Nottinghamshire Hospice)

Nottinghamshire Hospice West Bridgford

6 Gordon Rd, West Bridgford, Nottingham NG2 5LN

Also in West Bridgford (Rushcliffe), Nottinghamshire Hospice reopened this Gordon Road shop in March 2026 after a refit that added shelving, and the West Bridgford Wire's report on the relaunch named books both in the stock and among the donations the hospice most wants. It stands about 250 yards from Oxfam's Central Avenue bookshop, with 30-minute parking outside and a pay-and-display car park across the road. On Tuesdays a quiet hour from 9:30am suits shoppers who prefer less noise.

Hours: Mon–Fri 9am–5pm, Sat 9am–4:30pmWebsite

Charity shop (Nottinghamshire Hospice)

Nottinghamshire Hospice Beeston

Unit 4, Villa St, Beeston, Nottingham NG9 2NY

Back in Beeston (Broxtowe), Nottinghamshire Hospice opened its ninth shop on Villa Street, opposite Sainsbury's, on Thursday 3 July 2025, and the hospice's own announcement put books on the list with fashion and homeware. Its shop page mentions three hours of free parking across the road and a level, wheelchair-friendly entrance. Oxfam's High Road book branch is under 200 yards away, close enough to cover both in one stop.

Hours: Mon–Sat 9am–5pm, Sun 10am–4pmWebsite

Charity shop (Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance)

Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance Arnold

86–88 Front St, Arnold, Nottingham NG5 7EJ

In Arnold, a Gedling town some 3.6 miles north of Nottingham's centre, the Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance opened a charity shop at 86–88 Front Street in March 2026, its second in Nottinghamshire after Mansfield Woodhouse. Gedling Eye's report of the opening listed books with the clothing, electrical goods, children's toys and homewares. Donations are dropped at the back, reached through Blatherwick Car Park on Ravenswood Road.

Hours: Mon–Sat 9:30am–4:30pmWebsite

Charity shop (The Air Ambulance Service)

The Air Ambulance Service Ilkeston

54–56 Bath St, Ilkeston DE7 8FD

Over the Derbyshire border in Ilkeston, part of Erewash borough and nearly seven miles west of Old Market Square, The Air Ambulance Service opened this Bath Street shop on Friday 29 May 2026, in a unit Peacocks had vacated four years before. Derbyshire Live's preview called it a first of its kind for the charity, trading under both its Your Local Air Ambulance and National Children's Air Ambulance names, and listed books alongside clothing, DVDs, games and cookware. The charity's retail manager also invited people in to donate pre-loved goods or ask about volunteering.

Hours: Mon–Sat 9am–5pm, Sun 10am–4pmWebsite

Car boot sales & markets

Brocante & flea market

Lady Bay Brocante & Flea Market

Lady Bay Primary School, Trent Blvd, West Bridgford, Nottingham NG2 5BD

In Lady Bay, on the West Bridgford bank of the Trent in Rushcliffe borough, this Sunday market takes over the playground of Lady Bay Primary School, and its organisers list books and vinyl among the antiques, bric-a-brac, second-hand bikes and kitchenware. Their site gives the remaining 2026 dates as 4 October, 1 November and 6 December, with the market back on 7 March 2027. Entry costs £1, children go free, and cash is the safer bet because few stallholders take cards. Anyone can book a 3m by 3m pitch from £22.50 to sell their own stock.

Hours: Sun 4 Oct, 1 Nov and 6 Dec 2026, 9am–2pmWebsite

Scan before you buy

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Local sourcing tips

The Children's Society opened a bookshop on St Wilfrid's Square in Calverton, a Gedling village some 6.4 miles out, on Thursday 8 May 2025, beside its general charity shop there. The charity's Calverton Facebook group was still posting fresh stock for the bookshop in 2026, from Lord of the Rings and Warhammer titles on 26 August to a pop-up shelf of angling books on 15 September.
Bromley House Library, the subscription library on Angel Row, ran a book sale from a pop-up shop beside its main door in summer 2026: non-members could buy from 22 to 26 June, at prices from 50p to a few pounds, before the sale carried on for members into July. Watch the library's Instagram feed to catch any future sale.
Calverton Carboot on Whinbush Lane, in Gedling borough, posted in February 2026 that the first sale of its season would be on Sunday 15 March. The organiser's posts don't mention books, so go expecting a general boot sale rather than a book hunt.
Victoria Centre Market is no longer a place to look for books. LeftLion reported in February 2026 that just four businesses were still trading inside: a watch repairer, a café, a jeweller and a hardware shop.
Five Leaves on Long Row is a fine independent for new titles, but its website states that it does not stock or order second-hand books.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I find cheap used books in Nottingham?

Bookwise on Goose Gate sets £2 as the usual price of a paperback novel and starts non-fiction at £3, according to its 2026 notice. Bromley House Library's June 2026 pop-up sale went lower still, from 50p, and getting into the Lady Bay Brocante costs £1 on its remaining Sundays of 2026, with books among the stalls.

Where do I sell used books in Nottingham?

Apart from the Lady Bay Brocante, every stop listed is a charity living on donated stock, so they're places to give books, not to cash them in. To sell face to face, take a 3m by 3m pitch at the Brocante from £22.50; to sell remotely, list them on Vinted, or on eBay's and Amazon's British storefronts. Snap the stack with BiblioScan before you choose: a single picture of the pile lets the app name each spine and price its likely resale, so the few worth listing singly stand out from the ones better sold by the boxful.

Which day is best for book hunting in Nottingham?

Friday or Saturday, when Bookwise stays open until 5pm rather than 4pm; the Beeston and West Bridgford hospice shops plus both air ambulance shops trade on those days as well. On Sundays the Beeston hospice shop and the Ilkeston air ambulance shop open from 10am to 4pm, Oxfam's Central Avenue bookshop says it opens every day, the West Bridgford hospice shop and the Arnold shop stay shut, and the Lady Bay Brocante has three Sundays left in 2026, starting on 4 October.

Which charity shops have books in Nottingham?

Start with the dedicated book branches: Oxfam Books & Music on Market Street, in Beeston and on Central Avenue in West Bridgford, Bookwise on Goose Gate, and The Children's Society's bookshop in Calverton. Nottinghamshire Hospice's shops in West Bridgford, Beeston and Sherwood, Oxfam's Tudor Square shop, the Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance shop in Arnold and The Air Ambulance Service's Ilkeston shop also sell books alongside clothing and homeware.

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Nearby cities

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