We are delighted to announce that the Great School Libraries campaign and the Primary School Library Alliance have commissioned a comprehensive survey into primary and secondary school library provision across the UK. The survey will build on the knowledge gained from the Phase One survey of the campaign, and gain insights across the four nations. If you are interested in contributing to the research then please contact: learningresourcesurvey@bmgresearch.com

On the launch of Phase Two of this campaign, Nick Poole (CEO of CILIP) wrote to the Secretary of State for Education to bring the campaign, and the potential of school libraries, to his attention. We were delighted with the response, of which we share some excerpts here. In addition, both Alison Tarrant (Co-Chair of the GSL Campaign) and Nick Poole attended a meeting with Minister Robin Walker, hosted by the National Literacy Trust, to discuss the role school libraries, books and book knowledge can play in the educational landscape. Key messages from the letter below were also visible in a written response from Minister Walker to Jim Shannon MP, and there is clear recognition of the role of school libraries in improving literacy: “head teachers recognise the important role school libraries play in improving literacy and encouraging pupils to read for pleasure, and ensure that suitable library facilities are provided”. You can read the full text of the response here: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2022-03-29/149254 We look forward to building on these relationships, and highlighting the multitude of ways school libraries can support pupils and teachers, over the course of Phase Two. Excerpts from letter 15th March 2022 from Rt Hon Nadhim Zahawi MP, Secretary of State for Education, to Nick Poole, Chief Executive, CILIP Thank you for drawing my attention to the vital work the vital work that CILIP, the School Libraries Group and the School Library Association are doing are doing to improve children’s access to libraries all over the country. Ensuring that every child has access to world-class teaching of literacy will form a vital part of this government’s mission to ‘level up’ education across the country. Making sure that children become engaged with reading from the beginning is one of the most important ways to make a difference to their life chances, whatever their socio-economic background. My department wants all children to have the opportunity to read widely both in and out of school, and individual schools will decide how best to provide and maintain access to books for their pupils, including whether to employ a qualified librarian. Many head teachers recognise the important role school libraries play in improving literacy and encouraging pupils to read for pleasure and ensure that suitable library facilities are provided. I appreciate you drawing my attention to the Great School Libraries campaign. I am keen to hear more about it, and about how school libraries can support with literacy and levelling up.

CILIP, CILIP School Libraries Group and the School Library Association announces a second phase of the Great School Libraries campaign. First launched in September 2018, the Great School Libraries campaign advocates for every school age child to benefit from access to a great school library - a designated space, with high quality stock and supported by dedicated staff. The Great School Libraries campaign is working with stakeholders from across the education sector to demonstrate how school libraries help support the post-pandemic recovery. There is strong evidence linking school library provision with a range of positive outcomes, including; improved qualifications, increased efficiency for schools and a better quality of life for children and young people. The first three years of the campaign have delivered the influential UK-wide report into school library provision, the largest collection of case studies showcasing school library impact and new research and toolkits into inquiry-based learning, mental health and well-being. Building on these findings and in response to the increasing educational and literacy gaps brought about by the Covid pandemic, the Great School Libraries campaign is moving into Phase 2. This phase will position great school libraries as a key part of academic recovery and the successful provision of formal education. Co-chairs Caroline Roche and Alison Tarrant said, “There has never been a more important time to advocate for the role that school libraries play across so many areas of development: careers, creativity, research, building independence wellbeing, empathy and of course, literacy and reading. It is a basic fact that education depends on reading, and school libraries have been evidenced to lead to improved outcomes for learners.” The campaign has secured strong support from a range of sector stakeholders including the Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society, National Literacy Trust, Book Trust, Society of Authors, ASCEL and The Reading Agency. Phase 2 has also established a new steering committee to support the levelling up agenda including: Sufiya Ahmed: award-winning and Carnegie-nominated children’s and YA author, founder and director of the BIBI Foundation Richard Gerver: former headteacher, award-winning speaker, bestselling author and world-renowned thinker Karthik Krishnan: Venture Chair at Redesign Health, Adjunct Professor at NYU Stern School of Business and an NACD Certified Board Director Sonia Thompson: Director of the Research School and Headteacher at St Matthew’s CE Teaching School Maeve Walsh: experienced policymaker and government relations expert Sufiya Ahmed says “I have supported the Great School Libraries campaign ever since it was launched and am honored to serve on the steering committee for phase two. School libraries are vital to the wellbeing and education of our country’s children. They offer space for children to grow by offering stories and providing information. All of this contributes to children’s aspirations, allowing them to imagine a world beyond their bubble. School libraries are a means for levelling up and no child should be denied the opportunity to become the best versions of themselves.” Richard Gerver added, “Throughout my career as a teacher and as a Headteacher, a well-run, well-developed library was at the heart of school culture. If our job is to help our young people develop aspirations, a sense of value and of awe and wonder, then books, libraries and skilled librarians must be a non-negotiable; they are the catalysts for so much of what really matters in education.” The campaign is delighted to have secured sponsorship from the Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society. Exciting opportunities are available for sector and corporate organisations who wish to support the cause. For more information on how you can make a difference, please visit: www.greatschoollibraries.org.uk/sponsorship GET INVOLVED We're asking our supporters to help us raise awareness for the many benefits of school libraries by sharing the images below on social media and filling in the blank to tell us why you think great school libraries are so special. Remember to tag us and include the hashtag #GreatSchoolLibraries.

We are delighted that the Great School Libraries team have been working with Nottingham Trent University to develop some further research into school libraries. These focus specifically on the impact of school libraries on pupil wellbeing, SLT's understanding of and attitudes towards school libraries and understanding the impact of inquiry learning. The full research projects will be released later this year, alongside toolkits to support implementation of best practice in school libraries. Sign up to the newsletter to be the first to hear announcements from GSL. Until then, we're delighted to share some of the key findings from the literature reviews of the projects. The Role of School Libraries in Pupil Wellbeing Key points from the literature review Teachers report lacking training to deal with wellbeing issues (Kidger, J., Gunnell, D., Biddle, L., Campbell, R., & Donovan, J. (2010). Part and parcel of teaching? Secondary school staff's views on supporting student emotional health and well‐being. British Educational Research Journal, 36(6), 919-935.) Library usage positively correlates with general health in adults (Fujiwara, D., Lawton, R., & Mourato, S. (2015). The health and wellbeing benefits of public libraries Full report. Arts Council England and SIMETRICA.) 73% of children who use their school library have higher literacy engagement scores (Clark, C, & Teravainen-Goff, A. (2018b). School Libraries: Why Children and Young People Use Them or Not, Their Literacy Engagement and Mental Wellbeing. Findings from Our Annual Literacy Survey 2017/2018. National Literacy Trust Research Report. National Literacy Trust) The school library is a place where children say they can relax, read, study and enjoy quiet time (Hughes, H., Franz, J., Willis, J., Bland, D., & Rolfe, A. (2019). High school spaces and student transitioning: Designing for student wellbeing. In School Spaces for Student Wellbeing and Learning (pp. 97-119). Springer, Singapore.) There are examples of school libraries introducing new programmes and collections in order to centre children, and ensure engagement (Kirkland, A. B. (2021). So much more than a safe space: Student well-being in the school library. Synergy, 19(1).) This project is by Lauren James and supported by Clare Wood, Nottingham Trent University. Understanding Senior Leaders’ Understanding of and Attitudes towards School Libraries: Th Link Between Library Usage and Higher Grades and Retention Rates Key points from the literature review School librarians promote reading, develop literacy skills and this was valued by stakeholders (Scott, R., & Inskip, C. (2017). UK preparatory school librarians' and teachers' design and use of reading lists: A qualitative study of approaches, perceptions, and content. School Library Research, 20.) Headteachers which didn’t support the library were in schools with inadequate staffing and staff were less able to support the curriculum (Asselin, M. (2021, March). Factors of effective school libraries: a survey of perspectives of teachers, teacher-librarians, and principals. In IASL Annual Conference Proceedings (pp. 1-16).) Most stakeholders were unaware of the programs and support offered (Everhart, N. (2014). What Do Stakeholders Know about School Library Programs? Results of a Focus Group Evaluation. School Library Research, 17.) Staff qualifications were rated as low in a stakeholder survey (Al Musawi, A., & Amer, T. (2017). Stakeholders' Perceptions of Quality and Potential Improvements in the Learning Resources Centers at Omani Basic Education Schools. International Education Studies, 10(9), 124-140.) This project is by Zeynab Mohamed and supported by Clare Wood, Nottingham Trent University. Understanding the Impact of Inquiry Learning Key points from the literature review Since 1990, creativity scores have decreased by a large margin, even if IQ scores have increased (Kim, K. H. (2011). The creativity crisis: The decrease in creative thinking scores on the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking. Creativity research journal, 23(4), 285-295) Existing models of education are not optimal at teaching pupils to deal with contemporary problems (Perkins, D. (2010). Making learning whole: How seven principles of teaching can transform education. John Wiley & Sons) Intrinsic motivation likely leads to increased interest, enjoyment, self-regulation, well-being, and to better academic outcomes (Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2010). Self‐determination. The Corsini encyclopedia of psychology, 1-2) Chu 2009 compared students who experienced IBL to a control group of students who did not, and their findings showed higher grades in the IBL group, regardless of academic abilities (Chu, K. W. S. (2009). Inquiry project‐based learning with a partnership of three types of teachers and the school librarian. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 60(8), 1671-1686) This project is by Alex Dediu and supported by Clare Wood, Nottingham Trent University.

Guest blog written by Gaurav Dubay for Great School Libraries Campaign There is no profession exempt from being stereotyped – librarians, in particular, are no strangers to this and so the middle-aged, mid bun wearing and sensible shoe fashionistas are often what we imagine when we think of a librarian. This is entrenched in our own cultural thinking and reinforced by our media establishments. Those of us who are old enough may remember the vulnerable librarian from the opening scene of the 1984 classic, ‘Ghostbusters’; she most definitely typified the aforementioned and she was definitely scared of the ghost! Whilst stereotypes like this provide some entertainment value, the reality is that this can be damaging, particularly in an educational setting. You would be hard-pressed to find a librarian in a school setting who embodies this cliché-ridden image but when our ideas are so deeply ingrained, we may miss the many opportunities librarians can bring to our school establishment. Worse still, we may not recognise the potential for positive transformation a librarian can give us! So you may ask, what do librarians bring to our educational settings? From my experience, it’s certainly more than hushing everyone, that’s for sure! To that end, I would like to share with you what librarians can bring to our schools and why they are, when properly deployed, an invaluable resource. Driving Reading for Pleasure The most obvious way librarians support school culture are as drivers of reading for pleasure. When it comes to establishing reading groups, activities for World Book Day or simply recommending books to students, our librarians take a proactive approach in supporting this and in developing the Reading for Pleasure agenda in our schools. The benefits of reading for pleasure are unparalleled with the DfE (2015) finding that it ‘brings benefits across the whole curriculum’ and so the role our librarians play in developing this very important ethos is an essential one. Both the OUP and UKLA found that a reading for pleasure pedagogy is developed through: the establishment of social reading environments opportunities to read aloud opportunities for independent reading opportunities for informal book talk. Undoubtedly librarians support all of the above and whilst teachers can establish this in their classrooms, particularly in a primary setting, this is the natural, day to day activity of librarians. Teresa Cremin (2011) argues that ‘Reading for pleasure and wider reading urgently require a higher profile in education' as we know it helps to raise ‘both attainment and achievement’ and when a librarian so naturally supports this, the need for them in our schools is a must! Supporting the Curriculum Whilst our librarians inevitably support Reading for Pleasure, the modern librarian brings much-needed assistance to teaching and learning across the curriculum. Whether they aid teachers in finding books to support learning, lead small scale teaching sessions or aid students in research, they provide the important steps in developing pupil knowledge and agency. In my experience, librarians – who are most often naturally curious researchers – will willingly support teaching colleagues and assist them in delivering the curriculum. They often provide unique perspectives which we, as teachers, may not always have the time to explore for ourselves. Fostering a Culture of Student Agency However, the most poignant experience is in fostering student agency. Librarians give students the tools to develop their leadership skills, interdependence and independence. Yes, you may say that this is quite a bold claim, however, it is one I stand by quite firmly. In their day to day job, librarians often train younger students to take on different responsibilities in the running of their school library as student librarians. This often-overlooked role allows students to develop a sense of ownership for the library and wider school community, assist the school librarian and students, and act as positive role models for other library users. In addition to this, the student librarian develops the skills of interdependence working with staff, other student librarians and the librarian themselves and thus help shape a school’s ethos and values. Whilst the above is undervalued, the role librarians intuitively have in fostering a culture of student agency is perhaps even more overlooked. Teresa Cremin and other experts argue that a Reading for Pleasure culture that strongly supports student agency will ultimately lead to the intrinsic habits students need in order to achieve high outcomes; with almost a century of evidence proving these claims, they are unlikely to be wrong. Librarians do this as an unwritten part of their job description; every recommendation, every question and every conversation a librarian has is geared towards developing student agency, particularly when it comes to reading. It is through these simple approaches that our school librarians – unknowingly to us – unlock potential and to that end schools shouldn’t scale back but instead move forward, recognising the value our school librarians bring to our establishments. Bibliography: DfE (2015). ‘Reading the Next Steps’ Cremin, T (2011). ‘UKLA: Reading for pleasure and wider reading’ Gaurav Dubay is an experienced Head of English at an inner city boys’ grammar school in Birmingham. He also works as an Evidence Lead in Education with St Matthew’s Research School. Outside of education, Gaurav is an athletics geek, proud husband and father, and, most importantly to him, a Christian.

Guest blog written by Beverley Naidoo for Great School Libraries Campaign 25.9.2021 The last time I was in an actual school library was before our first covid lockdown in March 2020. Since then, I have talked with hundreds of young readers ‘online’, most of them sitting in their own classrooms while I sit at my desk at home. I still marvel at the technology that allows me to travel ‘virtually’ anywhere to meet readers, wherever they are. Yet I’d be remiss if I didn’t tell you that my favourite place for talking with young people has always been in a school library… surrounded by books, cared for by a great school librarian. When I think back to the schools that I’ve visited over the years as an author, the images that jostle in my head are almost all in school libraries. Some of these have been large and well stocked, thanks to generous funding. Others have been small and nurtured with much smaller budgets. What they’ve shared in common has been a dedicated librarian, committed to encouraging young people on journeys of discovery. From personal experience, I know how books can open doors and windows of the mind. I know the excitement of finding myself travelling to somewhere I’ve never been before and suddenly seeing life through someone else’s eyes. Having been brought up under apartheid with its physical and mental enclosures - where in my ‘whites-only’ convent school the library was also always shut - I was fortunate in my late teens to have experiences that began to open my mind. Among these experiences were books, including some that had been banned. Es’kia Mphahlele’s Down Second Avenue, for instance, not just opened but blew my mind. With South Africa’s censorship, it was only after coming to exile in England in the mid-1960s that I had free access to the growing Heinemann African Writers’ series. I was surely not alone in having my imagination set alight and my understanding transformed by such fine writers as Chinua Achebe, Ngugi wa Thiong’o, Bessie Head, to name just three. Of course, writers can’t change the world, but they can help expand our vision. Fiction writers might not set out to educate but they can be part of a deeply educative process. When a reader steps virtually into a character’s shoes, they immediately cross an invisible boundary beyond their own life. The power of fiction is to take a reader inside someone else’s head and heart. The image coined in 1990 by Professor Rudine Sims Bishop, from her studies in African American children’s literature, has never been bettered: that all children need books that are “mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors”. These are books that not only offer entry into imagined worlds but also books that act as mirrors in which readers see themselves and reflections of their own experience. We live in a society and world riven with deeply unhealthy divisions and massive inequalities. However, covid’s message has been loud and clear. Our world is interconnected, and no one is an island. Education, from its Latin origin, means to lead outwards. If we want schools that offer ‘education’, rather than narrow ‘schooling’, then libraries and librarians need to be at their heart… and properly funded. Their responsibility is huge: to provide oxygen to classrooms, teachers and children through books and resources that offer the “mirrors, windows and sliding glass doors” that can help equip our future generation face the pressing challenges of our planet. ©Beverley Naidoo 2021

Jill Coleman, Director of Children’s Books at BookTrust, talks about Cressida Cowell’s Life-changing Libraries campaign In 2019, the Great School Libraries survey revealed that school libraries were deteriorating, suffering from a lack of space, resource and expertise. Whilst every prison has a statutory library, the report found that one in eight primary schools had no library space at all. Worryingly schools with a higher proportion of children on free school meals were more than twice as likely not to have access to a designated library space. The impact of Covid-19 and the closure of schools and libraries during lockdown has only widened the educational divide for the most disadvantaged communities, who are well evidenced to be worst hit by the pandemic. A study by the Education Endowment Foundation from January of this year, found that primary-age pupils had significantly lower achievement in both reading and maths as a likely result of missed learning, with a large and concerning attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and non-disadvantaged pupils. Another study by the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE) reported that, during the pandemic, lack of access to books for primary school pupils had become a barrier to reading and overall literacy levels. Over the course of the past year, BookTrust has stepped up our work with partners to provide books and reading support to families in most need – as we know that the children that need books most, are the very children who are least likely to have them. The benefits of reading for pleasure are well-established. Evidence shows that it has a life-changing impact on a child’s life prospects, their mental health, wellbeing, self-esteem, educational achievement and so much more. According to the OECD, reading for pleasure is a bigger indicator of a child's educational success than their parent's socio-economic status. And school libraries play a vital role, with research showing that children who use their school library being more likely to read for pleasure and having better reading and writing attitudes – with this difference being greater for those eligible for free school meals. We know that teachers, librarians and parents have been working tirelessly to mitigate the huge problems caused by the pandemic. But, it’s impossible for a child to become a reader for pleasure if their parents or carers cannot afford books, they aren’t able to access a local library, and their primary school has no or poor library provision. How is it fair that millions of children are missing out on the life-changing benefits that reading for pleasure brings? This is why this week the Waterstones Children’s Laureate, Cressida Cowell, launched her Life-changing Libraries campaign, with the support of former laureates, BookTrust and a range of other literacy and reading organisations, calling on Prime Minister Boris Johnson to ring-fence funding for school libraries. Cressida’s open letter to the government calls for £100m to be allocated to resourcing primary school libraries every year. This funding would allow schools to establish entirely new libraries, staff their libraries and buy new stock; by comparison, £320m has been ringfenced to promote physical education in primary schools this year, with hundreds of millions set aside every year since 2013. Inspired by Cressida's 20 years of experience visiting schools, this campaign will also work to demonstrate the transformative power of a school library by supporting six very different primary schools across England - all of which have at least 25% of pupils eligible for free school meals – to develop a reading for pleasure culture. Each of the six schools taking part will receive a bespoke library space, stocked with a specially curated booklist of approximately 1,000 titles chosen by our expert team with guidance from CLPE. Staff at the schools will also receive professional training and mentoring from specialists at the School Library Association as part of a two-year membership, and will also have access to the CLPE's Power of Reading Training and Membership. Building is due to begin on the libraries this month before they officially open in June, while the project will monitor the impact on pupils' engagement, attitudes and reading behaviour over the course of a year. We at BookTrust are hugely excited to see the transformative impact these libraries have on the schools and the children in them, and for this to showcase the opportunities they open up. In the words of Cressida Cowell, “Put simply, libraries change lives. Literacy changes lives.” For more information visit BookTrust’s Life-changing Libraries page which will host tips, inspiration and advice from the six schools that are part of the project as well as other librarians, teachers and organisations.

As a well-established author with over fifty titles written for young people, I’ve visited a huge number of schools within the UK and world-wide. I have engaged with students and school staff at every level and given evidence to the School Inspectorate as a partner in achieving school aims. In addition, being a former professional librarian, and Head of Youth Library Services for a local authority, I have experience and insight into the teaching of information-retrieval skills and the promotion of reading to young people across a wide range. Our school libraries are vital in supporting the Curriculum throughout the school, including certificate examinations. In addition to the promotion of literacy, literature, knowledge and information-retrieval skills, a professionally delivered library service within a school embeds the joy of reading in our young people - building self- awareness, articulate self-expression, confidence, validating their life and culture - and leads to social and emotional literacy. In the company of their peer group, the pupils have the best opportunity to explore the resources which are absolutely fundamental to their development as mature well-informed citizens of our country and of the world. Via extension activities: Buddy-Reading schemes, inter-school, and with local primary and nursery schools, book clubs, poetry slams, arranging author visits, taking pupils to Book Festivals, and liaising with key organisations (within the local community and internationally) pupils are exposed to a multitude of experiences which would otherwise be inaccessible to them. Very many children have no contact with any other library service. A library within a school creates equal access to materials for all to support classroom and leisure learning. Modern life has created enormous pressure on families and homes which has impacted on the mental health of our young people. Changes within the education service, particularly regarding COVID- 19, show that the School Library is exceptionally well placed and has the flexibility to adapt to meet the needs of the students. Documented research states that reading encourages empathy, improves relationships with others, reduces stress and eases the symptoms of depression. It was found that young people who read have increased motivation and develop a more positive attitude. Thus, we guide our young people towards social and emotional competence. I am passionate about books, about literacy and literature. Stories resonate at the frequency of the human spirit. Words carry freight. They are capable of delivering literal meaning and emotional impact. Reading is the activity that enables you to think and feel at the same time. A book is a life raft to cling to. A book is a friend to turn to, a book is a cave you crawl into, a book is a white-knuckle roller-coaster ride, a book is a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas, a book is a delight. You can lose yourself in a book. But also, crucially, you can find yourself in a book. To encounter themes and characters which resonate with our lives is enormously self-affirming. You experience that chime of recognition and you realise you are not alone in thinking the way you do, or feeling the way you do, or acting the way do, or just... being you. Other than a professionally staffed school library there is nowhere else able to provide this service at that level. © Theresa Breslin – March 2021

This blog has been reposted by kind permission of Shelagh Toonen and the SLG group. This blog post is part of Librarians During Lockdown, a series highlighting the work that librarians in Scotland have been doing during the COVID-19 pandemic when library services have had to move online. It was written by Stephen Leitch on behalf of Moray school librarians. Lockdown has been a challenging time. In Moray, which has no School Library Service and each school librarian is managed by their school with their own priorities, Moray school librarians worked together to develop ways of supporting our individual education communities and each other. We would like to share with you some of the things we have achieved through working together. Using Microsoft Teams ELGIN ACADEMY ONLINE BOOK GROUP, WHO CREATED A VIDEO TO PROMOTE THE GROUP TO NEW PUPILS Developing a working knowledge of Teams has enabled us to work collaboratively and support our school communities. Shelagh Toonen at Elgin Academy has championed the use of Teams, creating library channels and running her junior and staff book groups and comic club through Teams. We all now use Teams to differing extents to reach and share information with pupils and staff, and Kirsten uses Google Classroom to keep in contact with library helpers. The weekly virtual meet up and posts on Teams meant that we were able to share what we were doing and offer advice and support to each other. Coming together to share and discuss has been a real positive for us, and boost for our confidence and mental health. Posting information in Teams also allowed colleagues who were absent due to illness to catch up easily on what we have been working on in their absence. Library Websites Before lockdown, only Elgin Academy library had a web presence. Kirsten Macleod from Elgin High School took the lead in developing a virtual library website, with contributions from her colleagues, and shared for other Moray school librarians to use and adapt if they wanted to. Now we all have a website and share new web resources and links in teams to allow each other to update our websites with. The websites sit outside of the school network giving parents access and allow us to share resources quickly in response to trending situations. Click here for Elgin High School Library website. Promoting Reading Concerned that pupils may not have access to free books (no school library in Moray has an ebook provider service), Stephen Leitch, librarian at Buckie High School and Keith Grammar School developed a weekly book poster called ‘Get Booked Up’ which highlighted 8 free online books that were readily available and required no sign up to access. This was shared as a web-linked poster on Twitter, library websites, Teams, and shared with colleagues. Click here to go to the poster We also developed book recommendation videos as a way to encourage reading in our communities. We all contributed short recordings of ourselves making a book recommendation (25 seconds to sell a book is a challenge), which I then turned into a ‘Moray School Librarians in Lockdown Recommend’ video – having to learn a new video editing software along the way. Being under 2 mins 20 allows them to be uploaded directly to Twitter accounts and easily shared on Teams, and we have been topical with our videos linking in with Pride Month for example. Click here for the video. Training & CPD Individually we have used webinars to develop our IT skills (particularly the daily Moray Digital Drop-In sessions developed by Moray Council Digital Learning team), book knowledge attending the range of online book festivals and author talks, and professional events (such as CILIPS Friday Webinars). The online environment has allowed us to share training we have learned on webinars or by ourselves, with each other using Teams and screen share. Creating virtual library classrooms, using PPT Screen Recorder to record virtual book talks, managing websites, using Google Classroom are some of the skills that we have been sharing, and leading a training session has brought its own skills requirements! P7/S1 Transition Using our new skills has allowed us to be part of P7/S1 Transition. From running book cover design competitions at Elgin Academy to creating at a virtual library on google slides with a quiz at Buckie High, we have made sure that school libraries have had a presence in their school transition programme online, so our new S1 pupils know who we are and have a positive impression of the library. Click here for virtual library. P7 ENTRY POSTED IN TEAMS FOR THE ELGIN ACADEMY TRANSITION COMPETITION Lockdown for school librarians in Moray has been challenging, but not without its opportunities. We haven’t been able to achieve all we wanted to do, but through working together, sharing resources and training remotely, we have been able to engage with pupils and staff, and by doing so have developed our digital skills base. With schools looking likely to be returning in August full time, we look forward to continuing to use these new skills and resources to provide a more diverse library service to our school communities. It will be an exciting time. Moray School Librarians are: Shelagh Toonen, Elgin Academy Kirsten MacLeod, Elgin High School, Angela Walker, Lossiemouth High School and Speyside High School, Shirley Munn, Forres Academy Stephen Leitch, Buckie High School and Keith Grammar School

In line with our Health and Wellbeing aim SLG Scotland gave kind permission for this blog to be re-posted here. Every month we showcase an activity or project that furthers one of the strategic aims of Vibrant Libraries, Thriving Schools (VLTS). This month we’ve collected what the committee members of the School Libraries Group (Scotland) have been doing to further the health and wellbeing aim of the National Strategy for School Libraries in Scotland. Our circumstances may be very different but no matter how small, every library activity is a reminder to pupils and staff that they are not alone. A safe space Although the library’s access has changed because of COVID restrictions, Amanda has worked with her pastoral team to identify the library as a safe space for pupils who need it during class time. Free time is just as important: Pamela has been able to give each year group their own day when they can visit the library at lunch: even if it is just to say hello to the library fish. Gillian’s library has also been open at lunch and “has been adopted by many of the S1s as a haven away from the main areas of the school.” Bibliotherapy The free CILIPS online CPD sessions have sparked several funding bids, including one by Carol which is based on the bibliotherapy work of Edinburgh school librarians Christine Babbs and Lynn Brown. Sharing stories with staff is another way of promoting the library’s health and wellbeing benefits: every day during Book Week Scotland, Pamela posted a picture of a very short poem or story on the staff Teams page, with no pressure on staff to do anything other than read it. It generated lots of discussion and positive feedback. Clubs Many of us still aren’t able to run clubs in person, but Microsoft Teams and other platforms have been a virtual venue where, in the words of Shelagh (our chair): “pupils can share, chat, create and connect with each other – and with staff too”. Competitions We’re one of the main places in school where (according to one S2 pupil) “fun stuff is still happening”. And if you don’t have access to your physical library space, you can still run competitions & events – even if they’re run online or via the classroom. Donna Baird shared details of her fantastic Book Week Scotland competition on Basecamp: challenging pupils to design their own facemask based on a book. Amanda ran this in her school, with the winner’s design turned into a mask. A design-your-own-bookmark competition ran the same way, with the bookmarks given to members of staff at the end of Book Week Scotland as a thank you for everything they’ve done this term, and as a reminder to take some time to read and relax. Events Pamela ran a ‘Tweet the Author’ event over Book Week Scotland. The aim was to connect readers with authors, passing on positivity from readers to writers, but it was a brilliant boost to lots of our pupils to see their comments liked, retweeted or replied to by writers they love. Connecting with other schools is another way of promoting positive health and wellbeing amongst pupils. Carol & Shelagh are both working with school library colleagues on health and wellbeing projects, one on bibliotherapy and the other nurturing creativity and offering a space to share creative work. Reading Reading can be a great stress-reliever and offers an escape from reality: all school librarians know this, which is why we’re working so hard to get books into the hands of readers. Many are turning to eBooks (their own or public library eBooks) to make sure pupils still have access to reading material even when they’re not in school. Reading support can also boost pupil wellbeing: Markie runs two book groups for pupils who have English as an additional language (for juniors & for seniors). They run in the Library during class time, providing a safe space for pupils to develop their language and literacy skills without judgement whilst fostering good reading habits. Pupils vote on which books to read which is then tied in with fun literacy-based activities and fervent discussion on related topics! Research Gillian runs a hybrid research/health & wellbeing project (H&WB) with all S1 PSE classes, which raises awareness of H&WB topics and identifies the library as a space which supports this. She asks pupils to pick a topic, then research it and create an information poster of their findings. A friendly face If you are currently in school and seeing pupils every day, then you are a friendly and familiar presence whether your library is open for business or not. Every interaction with pupils & staff is important: virtual or in-person, it doesn’t matter. You can offer the best kind of library service simply by offering a kind word or a moment of sanctuary to someone who really needs it. SLG Scotland are running an online author event with Victoria Williamson as part of Children’s Mental Health Week in February 2021. This will be a chance to find out how you can run virtual author visits in your school while COVID restrictions are in place. Stay tuned for more details later this month! Re-posted by kind permission of Shelagh Toonen and the SLG group. The original can be found here https://www.cilips.org.uk/health-wellbeing-and-the-national-strategy-for-school-libraries/

In one of my previous blogs, I updated developments around the Campaign and health education and mentioned that I had attended a CILIP/Health Education England (HEE) round table. Following this, I have been in discussion with colleagues working for HEE (SW and SE) as well as Berkshire NHS Trust and one of the things we talked about was collaboration between health and school librarians. Health librarians create a wide range of resources aimed at young people and their parents/carers yet often they are only shared with SENCOs in schools and do not reach other staff who could make use of them, including librarians. And yet school librarians work with all students within a school, providing reliable and trusted resources, and support, on a wide range of health issues. They also work in partnership with teachers delivering the PHSE curriculum. Following these discussions, Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust and Berkshire Healthcare have joined together to pilot a Health Literacy project which looks at the health and wellbeing of 16 – 18 year olds and I was delighted to be able to facilitate the involvement of the School Library Association (SLA) Berkshire branch. The pilot is looking to undertake a user journey mapping to understanding how young people aged 16-18 currently access health information. It will then pull together relevant resources to enable young people to be signposted to appropriate resources to make good health decisions. On top of this, it will also add resources which librarians, teachers, school nurses and pastoral leads may find useful. It is anticipated that some health literacy workshops could be delivered online to both students and staff, and there will be pre and post surveys at the start of the pilot as well as after the training. The organisers would like to have a class involved in the surveys and training, in addition to speaking to the school librarian and staff members for each year group to understand what support they may offer in terms of resources and signposting. The pilot will take place over the next 4 months. A report will be written up for HEE and, if the pilot is successful, it is hoped that it can be rolled out across Berkshire and more widely within schools and further education colleges. The organisers are inviting schools/colleges to get involved. As a member of the SLA Berkshire branch – and previous Chair for many years – I know how active and enthusiastic my colleagues are and so are likely to offer assistance with this but if you are a school librarian in Berkshire and not a member of the SLA (so haven’t received the email invitation), and would like to be considered for this exciting project please contact (by 27 November 2020): Barbara Moye Library and Knowledge Services Manager Berkshire Healthcare NHS FT Barbara.moye@berkshire.nhs.uk This is an exciting step forward and I will certainly share the report when it’s published. What excites me more is that this will create another means of getting resources to the people who need them. Collaboration brings mutual benefits to all parties, enabling an exchange and sharing of ideas as well as co-operation and involvement with projects. The Campaign is UK-wide – if you are a health librarian and think there is scope for doing something similar in your location with local school librarians, then I’m sure Barbara Moye would be happy to give you further details. And I know school librarians would be only too happy to help … Barbara Band GSL Campaign - Joint Vice Chair

My last update on this strand of the Great School Libraries Campaign was in early March, just before we went into lockdown. Schools closed to all but vulnerable children and those whose parents/carers were key workers, and teaching and learning were moved online. The situation regarding school libraries was very mixed; many librarians in independent schools were furloughed, others worked on a rota basis to provide support within schools whilst several worked from home providing online resources and activities. For some examples of what librarians did, do have a look at the lockdown case studies on the GSL Campaign website. One of the things impacted by Covid-19 has been the mental health and wellbeing of pupils aged 5 – 16 years. An NHS survey highlighted that lockdown has made conditions like depression and anxiety worse; previously one in nine children identified as having a mental disorder, this figure is now one in six. This increase makes it even more imperative that schools adopt a holistic approach to the mental health of pupils, engaging all staff and avenues of support – including the school librarian. And why the Campaign is still pursuing relevant connections and collaboration. CILIP/HEE Round Table I attended a round table that was hosted by CILIP and Health Education England (HEE). Various key partners were present including the CILIP School Libraries Group (SLG), the School Library Association (SLA), the Wellcome Foundation, The Reading Agency and the Patient Information Forum. The aim of this event was to work together to support citizens to develop skills needed to access and use health information, with citizens in this instance being defined as 16+ years of age. However, those who work in education know that children with low literacy levels often become adults with literacy problems so it is important to tackle this problem as early as possible – with “literacy” encompassing print, media, digital, and visual elements – and school librarians play a vital role in this. Following the round table I undertook further discussions with Sue Robertson, Library and Knowledge Services Development Lead (SW and SE), HEE; Barbara Moye, Library Services Manager, Berkshire NHS Trust; and Alison Horner-Le-Riche, Library and Knowledge Services Manager, Royal Berkshire NHS Trust. We explored existing resources that could be shared and disseminated into schools. Sue Robertson has created a LibGuide aimed at healthcare library staff with a section on health literacy and children and Alison Horner-Le-Riche shared the LibGuide created by her team. The latter is a useful source of resources, games and videos introducing health literacy to children. From our discussion, it was obvious that there was little collaboration with school librarians, the resources were often only being shared with the SENCO and not reaching other adults working with children. Although these LibGuides have been created within Berkshire, they are accessible to all and they are not unique, other areas are producing similar resources and this is an aspect that we want to explore further, to examine how these resources can reach a wider audience. Training With training being moved online, this was an excellent opportunity for me to deliver a webinar on Mental Health and Wellbeing via the CILIP School Libraries Group. Focusing on stress and anxiety, it covered research and statistics, the reasons why children are experiencing increased mental health issues, practical examples of how librarians can help, and useful resources and organisations. The webinar was well-attended but was also recorded allowing librarians who could not attend in-person access to the video, and we are planning to arrange further training in the future. Resources The past few months have seen the publication of a new School Library Association Guideline: Pupil Wellbeing and Mental Health. It is available to purchase from the SLA website and, as Stephen Buckley of Mind says in the foreword, “Mind’s own work with school-age children has demonstrated the importance of having a “trusted adult” in the school environment: someone able to demonstrate empathy, and someone who understands mental health from a young person’s point of view”. This adult is often the school librarian so it is important that they understand the factors that impact mental health and wellbeing, and how to support students who are struggling; this publication gives guidance on how school staff can provide assistance. To coincide with pupils returning to school in September, the autumn issue of The School Librarian, the member journal for the SLA, had a theme of mental health and wellbeing with related articles written by school library staff, recommended books, digital resources and a list of relevant organisations. The aim of this was to provide practical help and examples of best practice. Moving Forward … There is still a need to gather evidence on the role of the school library in supporting the mental health and wellbeing of pupils as well as exploring existing research and studies. With social distancing and bubbles in schools, it is difficult for librarians to undertake the usual activities such as book groups, crafting sessions, etc. but many are able to provide online alternatives. The Campaign would love to hear from anyone who is doing this. We would also like to collaborate further with mental health organisations in gathering statistics and evidence. Written by Barbara Band Vice-Chair GSL committee School Library Consultant