Launched at our sell-out 2011 Weekend Course, the SLA Standards for Secondary School Libraries are a statement of the right level of provision for school libraries serving secondary age pupils.

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Duncan Wright, School Librarian of the Year 2010, said: "This is just what school librarians need - these standards say it all".

School libraries are often overlooked and under-resourced in the increasingly difficult balancing act that is a school budget.

Ginette Doyle, Chair of the SLA, said: "the SLA’s mission is to support school libraries and to help busy senior managers in making the right decisions in resourcing and supporting school libraries – these standards are here to provide a straightforward road map of what is expected as standard in a good secondary school".

The impact a good school library and librarian can make on achievement and motivation is evinced in many recent reports published worldwide – Ofsted specifically mentions school libraries and their positive impacts in two of its reports published this year, Removing Barriers to Literacy and Excellence in English. 

Tricia Adams, Chief Executive of the SLA, said at the conference: "Here is the first step in the process that all senior managers can use as they, and we, all want students to be enabled to be independent lifelong learners and passionate readers. A good school library is a not a total panacea but it is a huge foundation stone for improvement of student outcomes".

See Also...

In 2009 the SLA published the Primary School Library Charter, a similar road map for schools in the primary sector wanting to establish or improve their library provision.