School librarians are being axed from all 23 of North Lanarkshire’s secondary schools in a budget-saving measure.
More than 2000 people have already signed an online petition against the decision, including award-winning local author Damian Barr; and the professional association for Scottish librarians has written to councillors asking that they “urgently reverse” the decision, saying it will “severely damage the quality of education” offered to pupils.
Council officials say the 17 impacted staff members are being offered redeployment or voluntary redundancy, and that the cost-cutting plans – confirmed in the final days of the academic year – were originally agreed in the authority’s 2020 budget.
