Jersey College for Girls Library is a welcoming, positive, and dynamic space where students are encouraged and empowered in their reading and learning. We aim to serve students and staff with fiction and non-fiction for reading for pleasure, as well as materials for wider reading, including preparation for university interviews, curriculum support, professional and personal development. Research skills are supported for independent research and the Extended Project Qualification.

Beyond reading, we aim to build community and promote student well-being through clubs, and events. We are an inclusive space where all library users can feel safe to read, learn, relax, and explore their interests.

The School Librarian has responsibility for the selection of materials for inclusion in the library. Items are selected based on the needs of the library’s diverse user groups, which include students from Year 7 to Year 13 and staff members. As such, a diverse range of materials is required to meet the needs of these groups. We prioritise stock that users will enjoy, but that will also challenge and extend their reading, personal and interpersonal skills, as well as provide different viewpoints to increase enjoyment, promote learning and build empathy.

In selecting materials for inclusion, the librarian judges materials based on:

• High degree of potential user appeal
• Contribution the subject matter makes to the curriculum and to the interests of the students
• Inclusion of themes reflecting the diversity of library users and ability to create empathy and understanding of other ways of living
• High artistic quality and/or literary style
• Favourable recommendations from students and/or Student Librarians, nominated student book reviewers, staff and other professionals, including the School’s Library Association
• Value commensurate with cost and/or need

It is understood that the library includes classic novels. It should be appreciated that such texts may include language and ideas that do not reflect contemporary values, and all classic books will be taken on their own literary merit and not excluded from the library on this basis. An up-to-date catalogue is kept, enabling stock to be checked regularly.

While the Librarian and other staff members will encourage and guide students toward suitable resources, they cannot gauge suitability of every resource for every individual student. Jersey College for Girls believes that a library collection of curated materials is one of the safest and most reliable ways to access information, and we support our students’ freedom of access to information. We encourage parents and guardians to engage with their children’s reading. If parents believe a resource that their child has brought home is unsuitable, they should ask their child to return it to the school and we are happy to help students find something more suitable. We welcome dialogue about book choice.

If parents have any queries about the reading material to which their children have access, these should be directed to the Librarian.

Materials are deselected from the library on a rolling basis when space is needed for new titles. This is often due to lack of use, changes in the curriculum, outdated or inaccurate information, overall condition, and/or lack of appeal to user groups. After deselection, materials are, in order of priority:

• Offered to library users for individual use
• Donated to charity
• Recycled or otherwise disposed, with due regard to the environment