Claudine Crabtree (Ngāpuhi)

Ko Maungataniwha te maunga
Ko Tapapa te awa
Ko Hokianga te moana
Ko Ngātokimatawhauroa te waka
Ko Ngāpuhi te iwi
Ko Te Uri Mahoe te hapū
Ko Mangamuka te marae
Ko Otene te whānau

I am Claudine Crabtree (Ngāpuhi and Tangata Tiriti). I am married to Nick, and we have two boys, Sam, 19 and Ben, 14, two cats and a dog, Phoebe. We currently live in Orakei, Tamaki Makaurau.

I was born and raised in Auckland and went to Murvale Primary, Bucklands Beach Intermediate and Pakuranga College. After a brief stint working in an office, I attended the University of Auckland and the University of Queensland.After university, I worked in various companies as an executive assistant. After travelling overseas while Nick pursued his professional sailing career, we had our boys and ran a business in Queenstown. Nick’s next role took us to Hampshire in the UK, where we lived for five years. It was here I volunteered at my son’s school library and loved it. That led to a part-time job and then to a full-time career.

Bookshops and libraries have always been my happy place. That anticipation and joy about books and what I might discover inside has never wavered.

A typical day in my role as a school library manager

I am the Library Manager at Baradene College of the Sacred Heart in Auckland, where I have been for nearly five years. I’m a passionate school librarian with more than ten years of experience in both UK and Aotearoa schools at primary and secondary levels.

A typical day – not that there ever is one – is welcoming students in, issuing and returning books, advising students and suggesting what book to read next, talking to classes and recommending books. And then there is the admin side – checking and responding to emails, ordering new books and talking to staff about reading, information literacy, referencing or research. The most important thing is to connect a student with a book. My day has been successful if I have done this at least once.

Career highlights

Being Library Manager at Baradene – I still pinch myself when I drive to the gates.

Becoming President Manukura of SLANZA. It’s early days yet, but I am keen to drive change, raise our profile and make a positive difference in the school library sector by ensuring every school has a library, a librarian and the finance and resources to support them.

The value of associations

I am a LIANZA member, and as President of SLANZA, I meet and work with LIANZA. I represent SLANZA on the LIANZA SLANZA Tertiary Grants project, which has been a rewarding experience for our associations. Our associations have a mutually beneficial relationship – connecting, collaborating and communicating with each other is so important as we fight to keep our libraries and to ensure they are recognised and valued by everyone. We are all working towards the same goal: for libraries to be at the centre of our communities, to encourage and increase reading for pleasure and to ensure everyone has access to relevant, current, trustworthy and reliable information. I attended the recent LIANZA Conference in Christchurch, which was fantastic. I took away lots of learning, advice, initiatives and contacts to enhance and improve my work and I look forward to sharing this with other school librarians in Aotearoa.

Early career advisers

For those new to the sector, I suggest volunteering in a library, even if it is just for a few hours. It is a great way to get to know a role, meet other librarians, and build contacts and connections. Most librarians I know are keen to share their knowledge and skills and to welcome more librarians into the sector.

Join an organisation like LIANZA or SLANZA if you want to work in a school library. Check out the reading lists and take part in some professional development. Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, the National Library website, has amazing information, advice and resources on their website that are worth checking out. Reach out, connect and meet up with other librarians in your area or around Aotearoa who are new to libraries too. Sharing problems, concerns and queries is a great way to get the help you need and to help others.

The future of the libraries and information services in Aotearoa

I would like to see a full-time school librarian and a library in at least 75% of schools in Aotearoa. Where that is not feasible, for example, in the 25% of schools with rolls of less than 100, then at a minimum, a dedicated space available for students to sit and read with a current, relevant and quality collection of books to borrow and take home.The data is unequivocal: school libraries and librarians are critical to school students’ academic and emotional intelligence. We are not just ‘keepers of the books’. We are literacy advocates, resource managers and research specialists. We encourage, support, help, care, motivate, engage and share our love of reading and learning with our communities. School libraries are unique in that they are right where students are, from when they start school until they finish.

I want everyone to recognise and realise how vital libraries and librarians are to our people and society. They are critical to every one of us, and we can’t afford to lose any of them. We need more!