The purpose of this thesis is to investigate how libraries meet the challenges of integrating newcomers. My questions are:

• What integration-promoting activities for newcomers are provided by public libraries?

• Which other providers collaborate with libraries designing appropriate activities for newcomers?

• What challenges do library staff face in integration processes? The method applied in this research is web surveys. Web surveys were sent to 94 town libraries, in five large municipalities. In the analysis concepts such as social capital, inclusion and exclusion were used.

Conclusions were that the most common integration promoting activities that libraries offer are language cafés, story time in several languages and help with homework and learning the Swedish language. Cooperation is mostly with volunteer organizations and local authorities to design appropriate activities for newcomers. The survey reveals that coordinating functions, which brings various stakeholders together can be developed.