Recent reports of the removal of more than 130 titles from a secondary school library in Greater Manchester have sparked critical conversations across the education and publishing sectors - not simply about individual books, but about who gets to decide what belongs on a school library shelf.

At the centre of the debate is a growing tension between safeguarding concerns, leadership decisions and the professional expertise of school librarians. Titles reportedly removed or reviewed included widely respected and widely read books such as Heartstopper by Alice Oseman, The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta, Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge, and Becoming by Michelle Obama - books that many educators will recognise as powerful tools for engagement, empathy and understanding.

The Role of the School Librarian

For those working in education, this situation highlights something fundamental: a school library is not just a collection of books. It is a curated, living resource shaped by professional judgement.

Organisations such as the School Library Association and Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals have emphasised that librarians are trained to assess age-appropriateness in context, understand the needs of their specific school community, balance challenge, representation and accessibility and support both curriculum and reading for pleasure. This work cannot be reduced to simple categorisation.

Can AI Replace Professional Judgement?

One of the more concerning elements of this case is the reported use of AI tools to categorise books as “inappropriate”, “upsetting” or “not written for children”.

While technology can support discovery and organisation, it lacks context around who the readers are. It lacks nuance around why a challenging book might matter. And it lacks professional judgement around when a book is right for a particular student.

Why This Matters for Schools

For teachers and school leaders, this isn’t just a debate about censorship, it’s about access. Trust. Educational equity.

School libraries remain one of the few free, inclusive, student-led spaces where young people can explore identity, difference and the wider world at their own pace.

When decisions are made without librarian input, there is a risk of narrowing the range of voices available, reducing representation in literature, discouraging reading for pleasure and creating a culture of caution or self-censorship. 

The Importance of Clear Policies

What this case ultimately underscores is the need for robust, transparent collection development policies, co-created between school leadership, librarians and (where appropriate) wider school communities. Such frameworks help ensure that concerns can be addressed constructively, that decisions are consistent and accountable and that professional expertise is respected.

This is not an isolated incident. Research highlighted previously by LoveReading4Schools showed recent conversations around book bans whereby more than half of UK school librarians surveyed had been asked to remove books from their shelves, with over half of those requests coming from parents - and in many cases, the books were subsequently removed.

Notably, a significant proportion of the challenged titles explored themes of race, identity and LGBTQ+ experiences, raising concerns about whose stories are being filtered out. While the UK has not historically seen the same level of coordinated book challenges as the US, this data suggests a quiet but growing pressure within schools, where decisions are increasingly influenced by individual objections rather than professional judgement or established policy.

The LoveReading4Schools View

At LoveReading4Schools, we believe deeply in the power of professionally curated school libraries. The books young people encounter - whether joyful, challenging, comforting or provocative - shape not only their reading lives, but their understanding of themselves and others.

The question is not whether some books are difficult.

The question is who is best placed to decide when and for whom they matter.

And in that conversation, the expertise of school librarians is not optional. It is absolutely essential.