School used AI to purge library of ‘inappropriate’ books including Orwell’s 1984 and Twilight, with librarian branded ‘safeguarding risk’

Campaigners claim a school is using artificial intelligence to censor books in its library, including George Orwell’s 1984 and Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight.

An investigation by Index on Censorship has revealed that a secondary school in Greater Manchester has earmarked nearly 200 books deemed ‘inappropriate’ for removal from its library.

These included Michelle Obama’s autobiography Becoming and Nicholas Sparks’ The Notebook.

The charity, which campaigns for freedom of expression, says the school is using artificial intelligence to produce summaries justifying why each book is unsuitable for students.

Incredibly, the school librarian was also subject to a ‘safeguarding’ investigation for allowing books into the library, which led to his resignation.

The name of the librarian or the school will not be released due to their vulnerability, Index said.

Although many of the books were initially removed, it is not known whether all the books on the list were banned from the library.

The case was disclosed this week by the school librarian, who spoke to the organization on condition of anonymity.

An investigation by Index on Censorship has revealed that a secondary school in Greater Manchester has earmarked nearly 200 books deemed ‘inappropriate’ for removal from its library (image: 1984 comic book version adapted by Matyáš Namai)

He said the purge began in November 2025, when the headteacher demanded the removal of Laura Bates’s non-fiction book Men Who Hate Women, an exposé of incel culture.

The headmaster felt the book was inappropriate because it ‘reveals misogynistic beliefs’, although it was kept in a special section for older pupils.

Following this incident, the school launched an ‘investigation’ against the librarian and closed the library as a ‘temporary protective measure’.

He was then asked to remove books that were ‘not written for children’, ‘have themes that could upset children’ and were ‘inappropriate or pose a safety risk’.

He told Index: ‘I was absolutely stunned. ‘I couldn’t believe what I heard.’

The school also reported him to the council as a safeguarding risk due to the introduction of ‘inappropriate’ books – and there was also a threat of gross misconduct proceedings.

The school shared with Index a list of 193 books it deemed inappropriate, seen by Index.

Index said it had seen another document in which the school acknowledged that the reasons for the censorship were written by artificial intelligence.

Also on the list was Michelle Obama’s autobiography, Becoming (pictured)

Also on the list was the 2004 film The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks (pictured), starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams.

The document said: ‘Although the categorization was created using artificial intelligence, I think this classification is generally accurate.’

It is not known whether artificial intelligence plays a role in the selection of books to be included in the list.

The listing included a 1984 comic book version drawn by Matyáš Namai, and the AI-generated summary warning included ‘themes of torture, violence, sexual coercion’.

Meanwhile, Twilight, which is generally recommended for students aged 14 and up, was on the list for its ‘mature romantic themes, sexual tension and violence involving vampires and werewolves’.

Michelle Obama’s book was on the list for “racism and political themes,” while Nicholas Sparks’ The Notebook was oddly on the list for being “a romantic drama about enduring love and memory loss.”

The novel, which was filmed in 2004 starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams, is about a devoted husband’s journey to help his wife, who has Alzheimer’s disease, remember the life they lived together.

And Terry Pratchett’s comedy fantasy novel Soul Music also fell under the censors’ fault for ‘adult audience content’ which ‘may contain sexual material, violence, abuse, substance abuse or psychologically distressing themes’.

The list also included Zadie Smith’s White Teeth, Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code and actor Alan Rickman’s autobiography Madly Deeply.

The librarian took sick leave due to stress and eventually resigned, but the council’s safeguarding complaint went ahead and was upheld for ‘failure to follow safeguarding procedures’ due to multiple books with ‘inappropriate content’.

Some of the books were ordered by people other than him, and he says his department manager approved all purchases.

The Librarian is supported by the School Libraries Group (SLG), part of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP).

SLG chief executive Caroline Roche told Index: ‘This is hugely exaggerated. This ruined his career.

‘Being protected means [she] ‘I’ll never be able to work in a school again.’

Index said the case arose because there was no legal guidance for school libraries, leaving librarians vulnerable to demands from headteachers.

An Index spokesman said: ‘Index believes this story will be of significant public interest. This is an unprecedented attack on freedom of reading and intellectual freedom in which important safeguards were misused to threaten and target a school librarian. ‘This librarian can no longer do her job.’

The full investigation is available at: Index on censorship website.

The school, which serves students ages 11 to 16, did not respond to Index requests for comment.