School libraries are more than shelves filled with books. Libraries are vibrant hubs where students can develop literacy, digital knowledge, critical thinking and a lifelong love of reading.

Across Australia, school libraries and teacher librarians are working alongside teachers to develop learning programs, organise study projects, host authors and help students understand an increasingly complex world. Yet, despite their importance, many school libraries are facing declining investment, shortages of qualified library staff, limited funding, ageing collections and growing inequity in access.

Two growing campaigns, "Students Need School Libraries" and "Children’s Authors & Illustrators Stand Up for School Libraries" are calling on communities to help protect our libraries.

Authors and Illustrators including Sarah Davis, Marjorie Crosby-Fairall, Susanne Gervay, Deborah Abela and Margaret Roc are urging parents, educators and communities to recognise the vital need for school libraries in children’s education.

Recipient of the Lady Cutler Award for distinguished services to children's literature (2007), author Susanne Gervay OAM, says “I couldn’t survive without my school library as a student, teacher, author.”

Award winning author Deborah Abela agrees, sharing “For all of us who visit or work in a library or who have kids in school, we know that a good school has the library at its heart. “

At a time when students need strong literacy skills, critical thinking and guidance, investing in school libraries has never been more important. However, the reality is dire.

In South Australia, fewer than 15 per cent of all schools have a qualified Teacher Librarian (TL). Many new schools no longer have a library and a few existing schools have removed the library entirely.

Western Australia has very few TLs and Tasmania is similar. The situation is a little better in NSW and QLD but all states are reporting a trend towards removing teacher librarians and in some cases the library as well.

During August, Students Need School Libraries will celebrate Australian School Library Day on August 26 with the theme, School Libraries: The Best Investment. This year's campaign highlights why sustained investment, both financial and in qualified library staff, is essential to ensuring every student has access to a dynamic and thriving school library.

Australian School Library Day is celebrated on the Wednesday of Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Children's Book Week – a busy time for school libraries but also the right time to recognise how essential school libraries are in ensuring that reading is part of everyday life and that students have access to fabulous books and resources, not just in Book Week, but every week of the year.

Since its creation in 2022, Australian School Library Day has celebrated the often-unseen work of school library staff and encouraged school communities to recognise their contribution to education.

Community members can support the campaigns by asking whether their local school library is adequately resourced, and contacting local State and Federal Members of Parliament to advocate for stronger support for school libraries.

As authors Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton put it: "Reading underlies every area of the curriculum and the key is having a well-stocked school library and a passionate school librarian who can put the right book into the right hands at the right time."