+44 (0) 1273 386849The Library Is for Everyone: Why Inclusive Library Collections Matter More Than Ever
As the year draws to a close and planning begins for the new year ahead, the conversations sparked at this year’s Libraries Rising conference and EUROLIS seminar continue to resonate. Among them, one stood out: the growing tension between building inclusive library collections and defending the right to read.
For school, public, and other community libraries, this isn’t a theoretical debate or a culture-war headline. It’s a daily, practical question that shapes how we serve, protect, and empower our young readers.
In this post, we explore what it really means to create inclusive collections, the pressures libraries face from rising censorship and division, and how we can move forward with purpose, resilience, and joy.
Understanding the tensions: Censorship, fear, and exclusion
The most urgent tension discussed at Libraries Rising centred on censorship, particularly the rise of book bans in the United States. These efforts target books that allow people to tell their own stories – whether they are Black, Asian, LGBTQIA+, neurodivergent, trans, unhoused, or living with physical or mental illness.
We have seen what happens when a single household’s discomfort can swiftly become a school-wide policy. What disappears then is not just a book, but a lifeline. Visibility. Representation. The chance for a child to see their own reality treated with dignity rather than silence.
Concern is growing that similar patterns could emerge closer to home. According to EUROLIS, across Europe, libraries of all types are reporting renewed efforts to preserve LGBTQIA+ histories, document censored works, and fill gaps left by political pressure. The instinct everywhere is the same: when public discourse narrows, libraries expand – in courage, in welcome, in meaning.
In such moments, the response cannot be to retreat. It must be what libraries have always done best: hold space for belonging, offer safety without condition, and champion what many call Library Joy – the quiet, transformative experience of feeling seen.
What is an inclusive library collection?
At its core, an inclusive collection ensures every child and young person can see themselves (and others) in a book, feel welcome, build empathy, and become readers in their own right. It’s not just about content; it’s about format, access, and representation.
An inclusive collection:
Welcomes every format: audiobooks, graphic novels, manga, comics, ebooks – all valid types of reading material.
Reflects real lives: queer families, trans identities, disability, neurodiversity, mental health. Any stories that enable children to go out into the world equipped to deal with themselves and others, with humanity and compassion.
Supports early years development: books that nurture language, independence, and emotional growth.
Offers safety for newcomers: such as refugee families who may be navigating a library for the first time.
Tells the truth with compassion: ensuring that every child can recognise themselves – or discover someone unlike themselves – with dignity.
Inclusive library collections change lives. Conference speakers shared how, for anxious or isolated children, fictional characters became their first friends. One person explained that his local library was the first safe place for a refugee teenager. Reading for pleasure impacts not just literacy, but empathy, mental health, and life outcomes.
Inclusive practice also means transforming the systems behind the shelves. The British Library is reworking metadata to correct harmful language and contextualise bias so users aren’t confronted with outdated or discriminatory descriptions. In France, libraries are adapting physical and digital spaces to welcome visitors with disabilities, offering tactile resources, sign-language materials, and multi-sensory tours described as “visits with your ears.”
Inclusive collections aren’t a trend. They’re the everyday architecture of a library that keeps its doors open to everyone.
Facing pushback: Strategies that work
So how do libraries respond when inclusive collections are challenged? The conference insights – from youth panels, practitioners, and sector leaders – pointed to a shared set of approaches.
Turn up the volume on Library Joy: celebrate what libraries offer. Emphasise joy, belonging, and the right to explore stories.
Listen to the kids: young people are powerful advocates when supported to speak, whether through youth advisory groups, panel discussions, student-chosen displays, or simple suggestion boxes. Their voices are often clearer and more compelling than ours.
Be transparent: use established frameworks like the Lundy Model to ensure all community voices are heard and responded to. When concerns arise, reply quickly, in full, in plain language, and follow up. Honesty builds trust even when decisions are difficult.
Empower staff: frontline staff often face the most pressure. Toolkits, training, and shared talking points help them navigate conversations with parents and other stakeholders. Staff safety and well-being are non-negotiable foundations for inclusive practice.
Make inclusivity visible: simple changes help enormously – child-authored signage, inclusive posters, translated welcome postcards for newcomer families, displays built with young people rather than for them. Visual culture matters more than ever.
Market proactively: use social media such as Insta or TikTok to show that your library is more than books. It’s a living, evolving space where young people belong, so invite them in through diverse formats, different languages, and with permission, their voices.
Meet communities where they are: from book buses visiting schools and toddler groups, to intergenerational reading projects in Spain, to storytelling sessions co-delivered with refugee youth — the most effective practice begins with going out into the community, not waiting behind the desk.
These are not abstract ideals. They are real, workable actions taking place in libraries today. Even when policy shifts make inclusion harder, libraries do not stop being inclusive spaces. They adjust, they comply, and they continue to protect children’s wellbeing by offering stories that build empathy rather than erase it.
Why choose Simple Little Library System (SLLS)?
Inclusive collections thrive when the systems behind them are simple, dependable, and designed for real-world practice. SLLS supports inclusive work by making everyday library tasks easier:
Manage collections with intention: tag, track, and review stock with diversity and representation in mind.
Support every format: from audiobooks to manga, all materials can be catalogued and discovered with equal ease.
Help newcomers feel welcome: a clean, intuitive interface means anyone can browse and borrow without complexity.
Protect staff time: straightforward processes reduce admin pressure, leaving more room for real inclusion work.
Communicate clearly: borrower messages, reading histories, and overdue notices are easy to understand and accessible for all families.
By simplifying the background work, SLLS gives librarians more time and freedom to focus on what matters: connecting every reader with the story they need.
Your library collection is a lifeline
Inclusive library collections are not just books on shelves. They are declarations of welcome, acts of courage, and tools of empathy in a world that badly needs them. They protect the right to read, especially for those who depend on the library as their only safe place to encounter themselves on the page.
As you reflect this December – on your collection, your space, your community – ask:
Does every young person see themselves in this library?
Are we prepared to defend their right to read?
What practical steps can we take to strengthen access and belonging?
Your collection is a lifeline. Let it be a loud, joyful, welcoming one.
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