Free, filtered library WiFi that keeps your community connected

Safe public WiFi for every member and visitor, a sign-in page that promotes your events and services, single sign-on for library staff and a private key for every kiosk and public PC. One platform, run on the access points you already own.

• DNS content filtering on the public network
• OpenRoaming across council buildings
• Microsoft Entra ID sign-in for staff
• xPSK for kiosks and public PCs

A typical library today

• An open network or a password on the counter, with no control over what loads
• No evidence for councillors and funders of who the WiFi serves or how often
• Library staff on a shared password across every branch
• Self-service kiosks, public PCs and printers sharing one key that never changes

With Purple

• Filtered public WiFi that blocks harmful content, phishing and malware by category
• Visitor numbers, dwell time, repeat visits and short surveys from every branch
• Staff sign in with their own account, and leavers lose access when it is disabled
• Every device gets its own key and VLAN, kept apart from public and staff traffic

Free public WiFi that is safe for every age

Libraries welcome everyone, from toddlers at rhyme time to students revising and residents applying for jobs. Purple Shield filters the public network at DNS level, so you decide which categories, apps and sites load, and harmful content is blocked before it reaches a screen. Newcastle City Council runs the same approach across its libraries, gyms and high streets.

• Block content by category, app or domain, with custom allow and block lists
• Phishing and malware protection, with Internet Watch Foundation integration
• Limit streaming at busy times so everyone gets a fair share of bandwidth
• Sign in once, then OpenRoaming and Passpoint reconnect people at every council hotspot

Newcastle City Council's public WiFi connects council buildings, libraries, gyms and high streets under one sign-on, and 96% of visitors come back.

Turn every sign-in into a reason to come back

The WiFi sign-in page is the noticeboard everyone reads. Use it to promote author talks, code clubs, digital skills sessions and membership, ask a short question that shapes your service plan, and invite people to hear about what is on. Answers arrive with consent and flow to the platforms you already use.

• Micro-surveys at sign-in: Halton Council asks visitors to its leisure center why they came, to decide where to invest
• Tameside Council promoted Community Champion sign-ups on its sign-in page, viewed 4,000 times
• Opt-ins sent to GovDelivery, as East Riding of Yorkshire Council does, or to your CRM through 400+ data connectors
• Branded sign-in with CCPA/CPRA consent and a full audit trail

Visitor numbers, dwell time and repeat visits for every branch give you the evidence for your next report to councillors and funders.

One login for email, the library system and WiFi

Library staff and volunteers move between branches, mobile libraries and council offices. Purple syncs with Microsoft Entra ID, Google Workspace, Okta and JumpCloud over SCIM, so staff connect with the account they already use and group membership decides which network and policy each person gets.

• Leavers are revoked automatically when their account is disabled
• Staff, volunteers and contractors land on separate VLANs with their own rules
• Library laptops get EAP-TLS certificates through Intune or Jamf
• Cloud RADIUS with a 99.9% uptime SLA and no on-premise server to patch

Every staff session is logged against a named person, device, time and location, ready for your next information governance review.

A private key for every kiosk, PC and printer

Self-service kiosks, public PCs, print release stations, digital signage and meeting room AV cannot sign in with a username and password. xPSK gives each one its own key and its own VLAN, so a leaked key affects one device, not every branch.

• Revoke a single key without re-keying every device
• MAC binding ties each key to the first device that uses it
• Time-limited keys for contractors and visiting engineers, with no MDM needed
• Works under your vendor’s name: iPSK on Cisco, DPSK on Ruckus, MPSK on HPE Aruba and Juniper Mist, PPSK on Extreme and UniFi

Public WiFi that people come back to

Newcastle City Council connected its libraries, council buildings, gyms and high streets on one public network with Purple, built around digital inclusion, economic growth, placemaking and civic engagement. Residents keep coming back, and the network returns more than four times its annual cost.

Figures from Purple customer results (Newcastle City Council, 2025) and Purple platform data.

Free brochure

Take this page into your next budget meeting

Everything on this page as an eight-page PDF brochure, ready to share with the people who sign off your network spend.

See your library service on one WiFi platform

Tell us about your branches, mobile libraries and devices and we will show you how filtered public, staff and device access would work on your hardware.

• Works with Cisco Meraki, HPE Aruba, Ruckus, Juniper Mist, Ubiquiti UniFi, Cambium, Extreme and Fortinet
• DNS content filtering with Internet Watch Foundation integration
• ISO 27001 certified, Cyber Essentials, CCPA/CPRA compliant, US RADIUS region