School Deploys AI to Censor Library Books, Leading to Librarian's Resignation
Campaigners have revealed that a secondary school in Greater Manchester employed artificial intelligence to censor books in its library, targeting nearly 200 titles deemed inappropriate. The banned works include George Orwell's dystopian classic 1984 and Stephanie Meyer's popular vampire romance Twilight, sparking outrage over intellectual freedom.
Investigation Uncovers Widespread Book Purge
An investigation by Index on Censorship, a charity advocating for free expression, found that the school earmarked almost 200 books for removal. The list also featured Michelle Obama's autobiography Becoming and Nicholas Sparks' romantic novel The Notebook. According to the charity, the school used AI to generate summaries justifying why each book was unsuitable for pupils.
In a shocking turn, the school librarian was placed under a safeguarding investigation for allowing the books in the library, which ultimately led to her resignation. Index has chosen not to disclose the names of the librarian or the school, citing the librarian's vulnerable position.
Librarian's Account Reveals Chilling Details
The case came to light this week when the librarian spoke anonymously to Index on Censorship. She described how the purge began in November 2025, when the headteacher demanded the removal of Laura Bates' nonfiction book Men Who Hate Women, an exposé of incel culture. The head deemed it inappropriate due to its exposure of misogynistic beliefs, despite it being kept in a special section for older pupils.
Following this incident, the school launched an investigation into the librarian and temporarily closed the library as a safeguarding measure. She was instructed to remove any book that was not written for children, had themes that could upset children, or constituted a safeguarding risk.
The librarian told Index: "I was absolutely gobsmacked. I couldn't believe what I was hearing."The school reported her to the local council as a safeguarding risk for introducing inappropriate books and threatened gross misconduct proceedings. It shared a list of 193 books it considered potentially inappropriate, which Index reviewed.
AI-Generated Justifications for Censorship
Index confirmed it had seen a document in which the school admitted that the reasons for censorship were written by AI. The document stated: "Although the categorisation was generated using AI, I consider this classification to be broadly accurate." It remains unclear whether AI was also involved in initially selecting the books for the list.
The AI-generated summaries provided questionable justifications for the bans:
- A graphic novel version of 1984, illustrated by Matyáš Namai, was flagged for "themes of torture, violence, sexual coercion."
- Twilight, typically recommended for pupils aged 14 and over, was listed due to "mature romantic themes, sexual tension, and violence involving vampires and werewolves."
- Michelle Obama's Becoming was cited for "racism and political themes."
- The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks was bizarrely listed as a "romantic drama about enduring love and memory loss."
Other banned titles included Terry Pratchett's Soul Music for "adult audience content," Zadie Smith's White Teeth, Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code, and actor Alan Rickman's autobiography Madly Deeply.
Career Ruined and Systemic Failures Exposed
The librarian signed off sick due to stress and eventually resigned. However, the council safeguarding complaint proceeded and was upheld, citing her "failing to follow safeguarding procedures" because of "multiple books" with "inappropriate content." She argued that some books were ordered by others and her line manager approved all purchases.
Caroline Roche, chair of the School Libraries Group (SLG), part of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP), told Index: "This is over the top. It's ruined her career. The fact it's gone through safeguarding means she will never be able to work in a school again."
Index highlighted that this case arose due to the absence of statutory guidance for school libraries, leaving librarians vulnerable to headteachers' demands. A spokesman for Index said: "Index believes this story is of huge public interest. It is an unprecedented attack on the freedom to read and intellectual freedom, where important safeguarding measures have been misused to threaten and target a school librarian. This librarian is no longer able to do her job."
The school, which caters to pupils aged 11 to 16, has not responded to requests for comment from Index. Although many books were initially removed, it is unknown if all on the list remain banned from the library.
