School librarian and learning resource centre jobs

School librarians run the library, often called the learning resource centre (LRC), in secondary schools and some larger primaries and all-through schools. The job combines promoting reading, teaching pupils how to research, managing the stock and systems, and supervising the room before, during and after school. A librarianship degree or CILIP chartership helps, especially for “librarian” titles, but many LRC managers and assistants learn on the job. Pay is on the council pay spine in maintained schools, usually term-time only.

What the job involves

Most school librarians are the only library staff in their school, so the job is broad:

• choosing, buying, cataloguing and weeding books and other resources
• running the library management system and issuing and returning stock
• promoting reading through book clubs, reading challenges, author visits and displays
• working with English teachers on reading programmes and with other departments on research projects
• teaching information literacy: how to search, judge sources and avoid plagiarism
• supervising pupils who use the library at break, lunch and after school

The library is often a quiet refuge for pupils who struggle with the noise of the playground, and the librarian gets to know them. That means you need to follow the school’s safeguarding procedures and pass concerns to the designated safeguarding lead.

A role that varies by school

Because schools are not legally required to have a library, each one decides how much to invest. In one school the librarian is a qualified professional who leads reading strategy with senior staff and has a budget. In another the LRC is staffed by an assistant who also covers reprographics or invigilation. Read the job description closely; the title alone tells you little.

Some councils run a schools library service that lends collections and advises schools for a fee, and schools sometimes buy in support from it.

Qualifications

There is no single requirement. Common backgrounds include:

• a degree or postgraduate qualification in library and information science
• chartership with CILIP, the professional body for librarians
• experience in a public library, for example as a library assistant
• teaching assistant or English department experience, with a strong interest in reading

Posts titled “school librarian” more often ask for a professional qualification; “LRC manager” or “library assistant” posts often do not. Training in the specific library management system is given once you start.

You will need an enhanced DBS check with a children’s barred list check, which costs £41.00 in England and Wales from 5 October 2026.

Pay and term-time contracts

In maintained schools in England and Wales, librarians are support staff paid on the NJC pay spine through the council’s grades, and academies often use the same spine. The 2026/27 award added 3.3% from 1 April 2026. Qualified librarians with responsibility for reading strategy are usually graded higher than LRC assistants. As a rough guide, here are some full-time, full-year spine values (calculated from the 2025 figures plus 3.3%):

Spine point	Full-time salary 2026/27
SCP 7	£27,274
SCP 12	£29,542
SCP 17	£32,046
SCP 22	£34,811
SCP 26	£38,510

Most school library posts are term-time only, sometimes with a few extra days at the start or end of term for stock work. Under the NJC advisory model, term-time pay is a percentage of the full-time salary; on the NJC example, 39 weeks with a 36-day leave entitlement gives 86.778%, before any reduction for part-time hours. See term-time-only pay and the full NJC pay spine, then check your net pay with the take-home pay calculator.

Support staff in maintained schools and academies join the Local Government Pension Scheme. In 2026/27 contributions are 5.8% on pay from £18,401 to £29,000 and 6.5% from £29,001 to £47,300.

Getting a post

School library jobs are fairly scarce, so they attract applications from public librarians, former teachers and TAs. In your application, show how you have got young people reading, how you have worked with teachers, and any experience of library systems. Interviews sometimes include a short session with pupils or a presentation on how you would promote reading. Our guide to interview presentations helps with the second.

Vacancies appear on council sites, trust websites and the DfE Teaching Vacancies service, and are listed under school support jobs.