An academy trust running seven schools across Greater Manchester has temporarily removed David Walliams's books from its shelves. Oasis Charitable Trust said the decision was taken to "protect" its children.
Walliams was named in an investigation by The Guardian and ITV News on Tuesday (November 9), after he tried to obtain an injunction to prevent reporting of allegations against him. One woman described her alleged encounter with Walliams, when she was 15, as a "sexual assault", while multiple women accused him of "grooming" them as teenagers. The 55-year-old comedian, presenter and author denies any wrongdoing.
Trust Issues Guidance to Schools
Steve Chalke, founder of Oasis Charitable Trust, said the academy has issued guidance to headteachers across its 59 schools to temporarily remove Walliams's books. The affected schools include primary schools in Ashton-under-Lyne, Gorton, Harpurhey, Limeside in Oldham, and secondaries in Salford Quays, Leesbrook and Hollinwood in Oldham.
Chalke said: "Our advice is, for the sake of our children and to protect our children, the right thing to do – because this will traumatise some children without doubt if they read his name or see his face – is to remove books from our libraries temporarily. Children will hear this story. They hear it from TV, radio, pictures on the front of a paper. They hear it from their parents and others talking about it, so they know about it. For some that will trigger other memories. Children who've been in tough situations."
Schools and Unions Respond
Earlier today, Walliams's old school, Collingwood Boys' School in Wallington, south London, said it is "revisiting its collection" following the allegations. A spokesperson said: "Collingwood regularly reviews the books available to pupils. The current situation surrounding David Walliams has prompted us to revisit our collection as part of this ongoing process, rather than as an isolated or reactive decision."
The Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) is calling on the Government to issue guidance to help headteachers decide what to do with Walliams's books in schools. Pepe Di'Iasio, general secretary of the ASCL, said: "Schools regularly review the contents of their libraries and this includes ensuring the appropriateness of books available to pupils. We're sure that this is something they will be doing in light of these recent allegations. We'll also be asking the DfE to see if it has any guidance for schools which may be helpful in this process." The issue will be raised by the union in a meeting with the DfE on Friday.
Background and Publisher Response
Walliams has sold more than 60 million copies of his children's books globally, including The Boy In The Dress, Fing and Gangsta Granny, the latter turned into a one-hour BBC special in 2013, followed by a sequel starring Sheridan Smith in 2022. His publisher HarperCollins dropped him in December 2025 after an investigation into allegations that he had "harassed" young women, which the author denied.
Walliams unsuccessfully sought an injunction to prevent these publications because of the risk he would take his own life after two previous suicide attempts. The anonymity granted to the author was lifted after his injunction bid was dismissed and GNM and ITN published their investigations. Libraries Connected, a charity supporting public libraries, said: "Libraries follow established professional and ethical principles around stock availability – the starting point is that all books should be made available to readers unless the content of those books is illegal. But libraries continually refresh their collections in response to what their users want to read. In this case, we understand that demand for Walliams's books has fallen significantly in recent years. We would therefore expect the number of copies in circulation to decline naturally as they are replaced by newer and more popular titles – particularly as he is now without a publisher."
Following the claims, Walliams insisted he is "not a sexual predator". In response to the investigation, he said: "Looking back, I realise that at times I behaved thoughtlessly towards other people I had casual sexual relationships with... I realise I did not always take people's feelings properly into account. That is something I regret. And whilst a power imbalance is inevitable when one party is famous, abusing that power is something else entirely and it is something that I never did... I am not a sexual predator... I have not broken the law... I am devastated that some of the women I met ten to twenty years ago have now expressed hurt or anger towards me."
