Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans her Department has to promote the National Year of Reading in (a) early years settings, (b) primary schools, (c) secondary schools, (d) further education and (e) higher education in Southwest England.

The National Year of Reading is a UK-wide campaign to address long term declines in reading enjoyment through engaging new audiences, reshaping public attitudes and building the systems needed to embed lasting, meaningful change, during 2026 and beyond. It includes a major physical and online marketing campaign, as well as exciting events, webinars, resources, and activities in communities, libraries, schools and early years settings throughout the year.

We are raising awareness of the National Year of Reading through a range of methods, such as via departmental communication channels, the National Year of Reading mailing list and social media, communications from the National Literacy Trust and promotion via the English Hubs network.

The Reading Agency are also providing public libraries with resources, toolkits and print and digital materials to activate the National Year of Reading.  You can find out more about events in your local area here: https://goallin.org.uk/whats-on/. Schools and early years settings in South West England and across the UK can also access a range of engaging online webinars, resources and activities throughout the year. They can find more information here: https://goallin.org.uk/get-involved/schools/.

This government is also providing £5 million of funding for secondary schools to purchase books to encourage reading for pleasure, as well as committing over £10 million in funding to guarantee a library for every primary school by the end of this parliament.