Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to Table 4.1 entitled Budget 2025 policy decisions’ in the Budget Red Book, line item 42, National Year of Reading: Fund state-funded secondary schools in England to increase book supplies, whether these funds will be supplemented by funding from Dormant Assets.

As part of the National Year of Reading, state-funded secondary schools in England will receive funding to purchase books to support and encourage reading enjoyment amongst their pupils.

Funding will be distributed by the Department for Education, during the National Year of Reading 2026. This separate from the Dormant Assets Fund which will be used to fund libraries in primary schools and is administered by the Department for Culture Media and Sport.

Details about the allocation of funds will be communicated in the coming months.

This £5 million funding for books will accompany new continuous professional development training for secondary schools. The ‘Unlocking Reading’ programme starts in January 2026 and will equip schools with assessment tools and evidence-based strategies to support pupils with reading.