National Year of Reading

Earlier this month, the government announced the return of the National Year of Reading for 2026, an initiative aimed at tackling the steep and long-term decline in reading among children and young people. Backed by the Department for Education, the National Literacy Trust, and many of the UK’s leading publishers, the campaign comes in response to a stark statistic: only one in three young people now say they enjoy reading in their free time. That figure is the lowest recorded in a generation.

The Society of Authors supports the aims of the campaign and welcomes renewed national attention on literacy. But we believe its success will depend not only on book donations and publicity, but on proper recognition of the workforce and infrastructure that sustains reading in schools, libraries and communities every day.

The reading crisis is not new. Teachers, librarians, youth workers and cultural professionals have raised the alarm for years. Literacy is not simply about access to books, but about time, space and encouragement to read. These are the very things children in underfunded schools and communities have been denied. The link between reading for pleasure and people’s outcomes in education, employment and wellbeing is beyond dispute. What remains in question is whether the government will now invest in the structures and people needed to reverse the decline.

The rollout this summer of 72,000 free books to children in the most disadvantaged areas is a welcome step. So too is the involvement of respected organisations like the Queen’s Reading Room, Arts Council England and the Julia Rausing Trust, alongside a broad coalition of publishers and funders. It’s encouraging that a steering group will oversee delivery, and a programme director will be appointed in the coming months. But words must be followed by meaningful action.

A national reading culture cannot be rebuilt without accessible public libraries, well-supported teachers and investment in the people whose work brings books to life for children. Cuts to local library services and real-terms pay decline across education and for authors have all taken their toll.

Public libraries have reduced services and school libraries have been left underfunded or closed altogether. These are not surface issues but have eroded the conditions in which reading can thrive. If this campaign is to succeed, it must not paper over these cracks. It must help repair them with investment and respect for those who keep our reading culture alive.

The Society of Authors welcomes the government’s renewed focus on reading and investment. The National Year of Reading must not be a branding exercise, and it should deliver not just more books but also fair conditions for those who get books into children’s hands. Reading for pleasure is not a luxury. It is a right, and it must be made real for every child, in every classroom, library and home.