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How to audit your school library to support diversity and inclusion

March 23rd 2022

Diversity of reading material continues to be a vitally important consideration for schools, and many schools (both primary and secondary) have recently approached us for support with updating the books in their school library or classroom.

It’s tricky when there can be a lack of representative books, but publishers in the UK are working hard to make a positive change. The latest Reflecting Realities report from the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE) found a positive increase in children’s books featuring a minority ethnic character, from 10% in 2019 to 15% in 2020. This shows that there is still a way to go, but things are improving.

A number of organisations are already working alongside schools to increase children’s access to diverse books. InclusionLabs, for example, seeks to embed diversity, equity and inclusion in every young person’s educational, cultural and personal development; it has set a target for schools to aim for 25% of their books to be diverse and inclusive by 2030. Lit in Colour, the initiative from Penguin and the Runnymede Trust, aims to make the teaching and learning of English literature more inclusive and increase students’ access to more books by writers of colour, with a focus on GCSE set texts.

Inspired by this work and other campaigns, many school librarians and literacy leads are increasingly keen to ensure their book stock reflects the backgrounds and experiences of all pupils. While completing an extensive audit of the books in your library is a huge undertaking, don’t be put off – any steps you can take will help.

Our curriculum experts' top tips

1. Decide on your criteria. What data will you be recording? Diversity and inclusivity are a broad spectrum and can be tricky to define. Along with race/ethnicity and tracking whether your books feature characters from minority ethnic backgrounds, you should also be considering LGBTQ+, disability and neurodiversity, regional differences, socio-economic and religious backgrounds.

2. Audit a random sample. If you have limited time, try taking a sample of books (e.g. ten titles) and using those to extrapolate. For example, if only one of your ten books features a character of colour, you can deduce that this will apply to approximately 10% of your stock. Another option is to audit a specific genre and go from there.

3. Audit new purchases. Make the decision to start recording diversity data on new books you bring into your library, and as time goes on (particularly if you weed older stock too) you will be collecting useful information and building a comprehensive picture of your book stock.

4. Ensure your displays are representative. It sounds obvious, but if you’re setting up themed and topical book displays, make sure they feature books that represent a wide range of backgrounds and interests. Creating a teen romance display for Valentine’s Day? Ensure LGBTQ+ relationships have equal coverage, for instance. It’s great to feature Black History Month during October, but celebrating Black History shouldn’t be for one month only – can you incorporate a celebration of Black culture and ensure that BAME characters are represented all year round?

5. Give diverse recommendations. Be aware when students ask for recommendations from the shelves, including being aware of your own implicit biases. Be willing to recommend a wide range of material.

6. Stay up-to-date. Time can be a factor –particularly if your school doesn’t have a dedicated school librarian, or if you’re part-time – but if you’re aware of any new diverse and representative books, you’ll be able to confidently recommend them to your pupils.

7. Keep an eye on diverse publishers. There are publishers dedicated to representing currently under-represented groups for children and young adult books, so it’s worth keeping an eye on those. Knights Of is determined to include ‘as many perspectives as we can squeeze into the making-of each book.’ Lantana is an award-winning children's book publisher and social enterprise with a mission to publish inclusive books by under-represented voices, celebrating every kind of child and family. Book Island publishes picture books from around the world in English translation. Following diverse awards such as The Diverse Book Awards and the Jhalak Children’s and YA Prize will also give you ideas.

8. Use keywords. The keyword search on our website can be used to identify books with a range of diverse characteristics. This includes books by Black, minority and ethnic authors and illustrators; as well as diverse characters that explore disability, neurodiversity and LGBTQ+ issues.