We're delighted to share with you our latest blog in our series, Library Lifeline, written in association with the School Library Association. This series is designed to support anyone working in a school library by answering their questions directly. If you have a question that you’d like to ask our ‘agony aunt’ – the SLA’s Member Development Librarian, Dawn Woods – then please email us at worldofstories@literacytrust.org.uk and your question may be the focus of a future blog!
This week's question comes from a school librarian who is debating whether or not to set up a pupil librarian scheme in their school library.
I have heard from colleagues in other schools that their Pupil Library Assistants are a huge asset to their school but that the system can take some effort to set up. Is it worth me having Pupil Librarians in my school?
School Librarian
Each new year or start of term, you may return to your school with resolutions to maintain order and build a strong reading for pleasure culture in your school, but your hours may be the same, and you don’t have a team of assistants working for you.
Introducing Pupil Library Assistants, or Pupil Librarians into your library is an excellent addition and will be a much needed enhancement to your school library. This is not just a theory, we know that many library staff cite the addition of Pupil Librarians as invaluable. In cases where you don’t have a library, Reading Ambassadors can help just as much in helping you to celebrate your reading spaces and reading for pleasure.
What are the benefits of having Pupil Library Assistants?
We know that librarians in schools are strapped for time. Pupil Library Assistants will give staff another pair of hands to which they can delegate tasks. This in turn will free up librarians and allow you more time to develop and implement strategic elements of your reading culture.
However, having provision for the voluntary role of pupil library assistants will also enormously benefit the pupils.
For many children, a position of responsibility can be beneficial. Pupil Librarians can be rewarded with badges or with recognition given in assemblies. This will instil a sense of pride, accomplishment and ownership in their library as well as the achievements of being part of your team. Those who are Pupil Librarians in primary school may also feel more confident when inhabiting the library space once they make the transition to secondary school.
What does a Pupil Library Assistant programme do?
Most importantly, a voluntary Pupil Library Assistant programme would:
- Give pupils a voice in school
- Allow pupils to make a valuable contribution to the running of their school
- Develop pupil knowledge, skills and personal qualities in a real-life context
- Provide role models for other students
- Contribute towards embedding a reading culture in school
- Raise the profile of the library
- Support the library staff
What do pupils gain from helping in the library?
Recruiting pupil librarians creates a buzz around the school library and reading spaces, and it can have further long-lasting positive effects for the individuals involved, including but not limited to:
- Increased confidence and self-esteem
- Opportunities to take on responsibility
- Reward for a positive contribution
- The opportunity to assist other students
- A vehicle for student voice within the school
I want to create a Pupil Library Assistant programme - where do I start?
Now that you’re ready to go ahead and implement this wonderful, long-term initiative, we’ve got some pointers for you about tasks and duties to start off your Pupil Librarians and Library Assistants. Remember these can all be easily adapted to suit your particular set up and school needs. The role could be to:
- help in the library at agreed set times
- shelve returned books
- keep a section of the stock tidy and in the correct order
- help with library displays and book promotion
- help issue and return resources
- help other students find what they are looking for
- suggest appropriate titles for purchase
- take part in book events and celebrations
- Help with the technology side of running a library, setting up initiatives such as book trailers and filming book reviews for school-specific forums and social sites
Tips on how to recruit your Pupil Library Assistants
The number of Pupil Library Assistants needed will vary from school to school. Some primary schools will recruit perhaps two children from each year group at the beginning of the year or term. Larger schools may need more – recruiting two to three pupil library assistants to cover each day.
Appointments can be made annually (some schools ask pupils to apply in September while others prefer the end of the summer term) or at the beginning of every term.
A role for pupils to strive for
Make the process of recruiting and appointing your Pupil Library Assistants exciting and a privilege. If it is something that pupils are excited by and strive for, they are more likely to be engaged and become ambassadors for the role too. Why not include a procedure of advertising, inviting applications, interviewing and offering a training package with increasing responsibilities?
Training does involve an investment of time, but it pays off in increased awareness among your team in library routines and knowing the library can be kept tidy as pupils become very protective of their space. Reassess the initiative termly so that you can make any changes in accordance with what suits your individual school and its needs.
Be aware of GDPR concerns on the library management system, although most systems allow a pupil assistant log-in as a halfway house between your admin log-in and pupil’s own accounts.
Further support
The SLA have a downloadable toolkit available to members which has templates of job advertisement posters, interview tasks, outcome letters and a detailed training programme which makes the process less arduous.
There are also badges for sale on the website and there will shortly be a relaunch of the popular Pupil Library Assistant of the Year Award recognising the contribution nationally made by pupils who work in their school libraries, acknowledging the skills they have gained then give back to the school community.