Hear from last year's Winner of the PLAA!

Megan Urmston from Abbeyfield School in Chippenham, Wiltshire, won The Pupil Library Assistant of the Year Award 2023. Megan was competing against seven other amazing finalists before being announced as the winner of the award by children’s author Steve Cole during the ceremony in at the Peason Offices in London on Friday 30th June 2023.

Megan was nominated for the award by her school librarian Gareth Evans. Gareth explained that he nominated Megan for the award because “she has been a fantastic volunteer over the last four years in the library; sharing her love for reading with her peers and the wider community.”

We caught up with Megan a few months after winning the award to hear about her experience of being a Pupil Library Assistant at her school and becoming Pupil Library Assistant of the Year 2023.

Tell us a bit about yourself Megan and your love of reading?

I’ve loved books for as long as I can remember, even as far back as my first words, which were from a book my parents read to me. Ever since then, reading has been a massive part of my life, especially fantasy, science fiction and crime novels, which let me escape into the worlds of the books whenever I want. Outside of reading, I also love programming, music, radio and podcasts, acting and in particular musical theatre.

What is it like being a Pupil Library Assistant and what do you enjoy about your role?

I think becoming a Pupil Library Assistant was the best decision I ever made. It’s given me an amazing group of friends with the same love for books and the library as me, helped me develop my communication skills and made me realise how much I love libraries (more than I did before I started secondary school!). I love everything about the role, but my favourite part is shelving and tidying the books: I love organising the shelves and I find it helps me relax if I’m having a stressful or overwhelming day and the tidiness makes accessing the books easier for everyone else too.

How did you feel when you were selected as a finalist for the PLAA?

I remember nearly screaming the house down from pure joy when I found out! I was at home with my mum at the time and we had just finished watching the first episode of the television adaptation of A Kind of Spark by Elle McNicoll, one of my favourite authors. I had to wait until my dad had finished work to let him know, but I was really excited to tell him! I was so surprised and overjoyed to have been selected as a finalist that it took me a couple of days to process it.

What was it like attending the Award Ceremony, and winning the award as well?

It was an amazing day that I know I will remember forever. When I met the other finalists and heard about what they had done in their libraries, I honestly thought that one of them would win, which made the announcement that I had won the award even more of a surprise. The rest of the day felt like I’d been swept up in this incredible whirlwind, with lots of people asking me for photos or to tell them about my project, and then, eventually, coming home with a huge selection of books for me to escape into, one of which I started the very next day.

Can you give us an overview about your project for your school library?

My project is split into two parts. One of them is a Zen Zone, a sensory reset space inspired by my experience as an autistic student, which will be open to anyone who needs some time to decompress from the hustle and bustle of everyday school life. The other part of the project is LRC Live, a new school community podcast to allow students to engage with the library in a different way, with a group of students running the podcast and coming up with ideas for content. The outcomes from these should be to encourage people who would not normally come into the library to engage with it in different ways, both as a “virtual library” of content through the podcast, and a space to relax and decompress (and hopefully with a good book!) through the Zen Zone.

As a result of Megan winning the award, the school was awarded £500 by The Worshipful Company of Arbitrators to make Megan's project a reality. Over the course of the last few months the library's old storage room has been transformed into Megan’s Zen Room, which was officially opened by children's author Joffre White with Headteacher Mr Nick Norgrove on Tuesday 3rd October. The school will also be starting a new podcast club very soon to develop their new school community podcast.

Mr Norgrove had the following to say about Megan's achievement of winning this prestigious award: "Megan's hard work, dedication and commitment to this role along with her infectious smile deserves to be recognised. She, along with all the other assistants, with the support of Mr Evans, make the library a place that students want to engage with. We have a reputation on both a local and national level for leadership opportunities, which I am proud to see acknowledged and look forward to seeing Megan's achievements inspire younger pupils to continue in her footsteps”.

If you would like to acknowledge the contributions of a dedicated Pupil Library Assistant who helps out in your Library, Nominations for the Pupil Library Assistant of the Year 2024 are now open! Head over to the PLAA 2024 page to Nominate your Primary or Secondary Pupil Library Assistants before submissions close on 13th November 2023.