“School libraries are not optional enhancements but essential infrastructure—powerful equalisers that ensure every child, regardless of background, can engage with reading and realise their potential.”
MPs call for urgent investment in school libraries to stem the "devastating fall" in children reading for pleasure, in a report released today. If recommendations from the much-anticipated report on Reading for Pleasure are followed, then every school in the UK will have a school library as a legal requirement.
“It is striking that libraries are statutory requirements in prisons, but not schools…[the Department for Education] must recognise school libraries as essential public services and place them on a statutory footing.”
The School Library Association has long advocated for a statutory requirement for every school to have a library, and today’s announcement is a milestone moment – which comes as we approach our 90th anniversary. It brings us one huge step closer to ensuring every child and young person has access to all the social, emotional and educational benefits of reading for pleasure.
The cross-party Education Committee report is based on written and oral evidence gathered from education experts, publishers, authors and charities, including the School Library Association.
The report gives vital recognition to the role that both school libraries and school librarians play in inspiring a love of reading in children and young people. It emphasises SLA CEO Victoria Dilly’s evidence about the particular importance of school libraries for children from disadvantaged backgrounds, and in creating inclusive, welcoming spaces that provide access to a diverse range of books.
Several of the recommendations made for school libraries draw directly from the oral and written evidence supplied by the School Library Association.
We are incredibly grateful to have had the opportunity to submit this evidence, and to speak on behalf of all the dedicated school librarians who we support, and who work tirelessly to engage children and young people and make sure that all pupils feel welcome and confident in using the library.
The key recommendations made for school libraries are:
• The Department for Education should extend its pledge to fund a library in every primary school to include every secondary school
• Once funding for primary and secondary schools is in place, the Department must recognise school libraries as essential public services and place them on a statutory footing. As part of this, it should consult on the definition of a library and be open to including book corners in classrooms or other reading spaces, as well as dedicated rooms. As a first step, it must start collecting data on school libraries and the presence of dedicated library staff by adding this to the school census. This must be completed by the end of the next academic year
• The Department should introduce a school library development fund to enable schools to refresh their book stock and train staff to run their school library with maximum impact
• The Department should set an expectation for all schools to include dedicated library lessons in the school timetable
• The Department must update its design guidelines to ensure that a library is specified as an essential component of every new school
We look forward to seeing how the Government acts on these recommendations and stand ready to help develop and deliver the required support for schools.
In the meantime, we will continue our vital work with a renewed sense of purpose, looking ahead to the new school year and the School Library Association’s 90th anniversary.
Read the full Reading for Pleasure report
Watch Victoria Dilly give evidence to the Education Committee