In spring 2022, Ofsted led research visits to 6 secondary schools in which a higher-than-expected proportion of poor readers got a grade 4 or above in English language at GCSE. The findings illustrate how these secondary schools identify specific reading weaknesses, and how they provide targeted support for struggling readers. The report describes how these secondary schools make sure that pupils who have left primary school not able to read age-appropriate books with fluency become proficient readers who can access the secondary curriculum.

The School Library Association CEO Alison Tarrant explored the report's findings and shared what they mean for school library staff and their line-managers, and here's what she had to say, "I read this report with great interest; it’s useful to be able to see what works for those six schools Ofsted spoke to about improving reading. I was naturally unsurprised to find out they all had a librarian, but it was nice to see it recognised." 

The report stated: 'The schools spoke about the importance of having highly skilled librarians who could help purchase books and direct pupils to books they found interesting. Three of the schools had at least one professionally qualified librarian.

In all of the schools, librarians were part of school initiatives to increase pupils’ reading and they supported reading-for-pleasure initiatives across the school. One literacy leader stressed how valuable the school librarian was:

"I want to really emphasise the importance of a well-informed librarian. Over the years we really had to fight for that but it’s made all the difference".'

Alison said, "We could just take this as a pat on the back and move on. But what else can school librarians and their line-managers take from this report?" 

Here are the main findings, and how this might relate to a school librarian:

Senior leaders prioritised reading. This links to the SLA recommendation that all school librarians should be line managed by a member of SLT, ideally with responsibility for the curriculum. Making sure the lines of communication between the library and the school is of the utmost importance. 

Schools identified gaps in pupils’ reading knowledge. This highlights the specifics of reading, but a school library can add to the picture. Primarily, by contributing data around borrowing habits – are there ‘able’ readers who aren’t engaging with the library? Pupils with a lower reading age that are? What are they borrowing? 

Leaders shared information. School library staff should also have access to this information to inform reading recommendations and homework support. 

Monitoring interventions. This is clearly important, but how can you identify the readers who might need intervention in the future? Combining borrowing data with information about a pupil’s attitude to reading can highlight not only those who aren’t engaging, but those who don’t feel positively about reading. These are the pupils who are less likely to read in their own time and therefore not continue on their reading journey. 

Support and monitoring stopped at KS3. This is where a reading culture comes in. For pupils to feel motivated to read for pleasure, there needs to be an authentic reading culture – not just reading for progress, but reading because the community wants to. Do you make time for reading for pleasure at KS4? What does this look like? A half-termly library lesson? One period of reading ‘homework’ (giving them the time to read amongst their other homework)? 

A strong partnership between the librarian and the reading lead is essential to establishing long term reading progress. One focuses on the teaching of reading, and one on the resourcing, promotion and building of a reading culture. They are two parts of the same equation; very different but equally important. 

It’s important to consider this in terms of the support for the school librarian – building a reading culture across a whole community (including parents/carers and other reading role models) isn’t quick or easy. It requires collaboration with all departments, all year groups and all cohorts. Is your librarian sufficiently trained and supported to do this? Are they splitting their time between additional duties, or not able to go to meetings with other department heads? These are things that can really hamper the impact of a librarian, and therefore the reading journey of a pupil. 

You can find out more about the support available to school librarians from the SLA website here. And below is a list of relevant reference books the SLA has produced.