17 Nov 2025
Saving School Libraries: A Churchill Fellow’s Global Tour
On this episode of Engaging and Empowering School Libraries, Claudine Crabtree, a New Zealand school librarian and Churchill Fellow, shares insights from her travels to Singapore, Scotland and England investigating how school libraries support students' literacy and wellbeing.
Claudine discusses successful approaches, persistent challenges around funding, staffing and measuring impact, and her advocacy work to strengthen school libraries in New Zealand and beyond.
The revised IFLA School Library Manifesto endorsed by UNESCO.
IFLA-UNESCO. (2025). IFLA–UNESCO school library manifesto 2025 [Manifesto]. IFLA.Https://repository.ifla.org/rest/api/core/bitstreams/e23b5ab5-d7ff-4c17-9012-badcc46cad25/content
The website to new school libraries campaign...
https://schoolsneedlibraries.org.nz/
Below are links to relevant research from Singapore and New Zealand that Claudine used pre and post grant.
SINGAPORE
CIVICA (Spydus) Singapore - Provides centralised hosted integrated library management system, staff of professional senior librarians and technical experts, plus library programme packages for government schools.
https://www.civica.com/en-sg/sector-pages/education/
Loh, C.E. Chin Ee Loh Reading by design – Singapore. https://www.readingbydesignsg.org/
Reading by design – Singapore. https://www.readingbydesignsg.org/
Loh, C. E. (2023). Designing future-ready school libraries: Empowering stakeholders for evidence-based change. International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA). https://repository.ifla.org/handle/123456789/2764
Loh, C. E., & Sun, B. (2021) Reading Habits of Singapore Teenagers. Singapore: National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University. https://repository.nie.edu.sg/server/api/core/bitstreams/ac3c57d8-cf0c-4253-923b-8b6ae15c1a09/content
Loh, C. E., Ellis, M., Paculdar, A. A., & Wan, Z. H. (2017). Building a successful reading culture through the school library: A case study of a Singapore secondary school. IFLA Journal, 43(4), 335–347. https://doi.org/10.1177/0340035217732069
Loh, C. E., Tam, A., & Okada, D. (2019, October). School library perspectives from Asia: Trends, innovations and challenges in Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan. https://doi.org/10.29173/iasl7258
Loh, C.E. (2018). Envisioning the School Library of the Future: A 21st Century Framework. Singapore: National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University.
Loh, C.E. (2018). School Library Perspectives Survey Report 2018. Singapore: National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University. https://repository.nie.edu.sg/server/api/core/bitstreams/4703367a-8a4c-4c40-afe4-9de74ae48e1d/content
Loh, C.E. (2019). Design Patterns for School Libraries: A Preliminary Report of the Building a Reading Culture Study 2019. National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Https://repository.nie.edu.sg/entities/publication/1c74986a-adbd-4aba-be66-8f7593b8be82
NEW ZEALAND
Hood, N. & Hughson, T. (2022). Now I don’t know my ABC: the perilous state of literacy in Aotearoa New Zealand. The Education Hub. Https://doi.org/10.1177/09610006241230101
Boyask, R., Wall, C., Harrington, C., Milne, J., Couch, D. (2021). Reading for Pleasure: For the Collective Good of Aotearoa New Zealand. National Library of New Zealand. Https://natlib.govt.nz/about-us/collaborative- projects/communities-of-readers/putoi-rito-communities-of-readers-reports/reading-for-pleasure-for-the-collective-good-of-aotearoa-new-zealand
Little, P. (2023, August 23). Why are schools sacrificing libraries despite plummeting literacy rates? New Zealand Listener. Https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/why-are-schools-sacrificing-libraries-despite-plummeting-literacy-rates
McNaughton, S. (2020). The literacy landscape in Aotearoa New Zealand: What we know, what needs fixing and what we should prioritise. Office of the Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor
