UK inquiry calls for decade of reading as England lags globally

A cross-party education committee has called for England’s National Year of Reading to become a ten-year initiative, warning that the country is falling far behind international averages. Chaired by Labour MP Helen Hayes, the inquiry concluded that the decline in children reading for pleasure is not inevitable, but the direct result of "policy choices, fragmented systems and unequal access".

For an economy navigating shifting work patterns and a cost-of-living crisis, the report frames literacy as a fundamental matter of opportunity. Isobel Hunter, chief executive of Libraries Connected, said the committee issued a "clear call to action", adding: "We urge the incoming Burnham government to make reading for pleasure part of its wider mission to spread opportunity and improve life chances."

The committee demands a National Reading Guarantee to ensure all children, regardless of background, have frequent access to books from birth to age 18. To deliver this, the report calls for restoring public library funding lost since 2010, extending a primary school library pledge to secondary schools, and automatically issuing library cards at birth.

While the rise of screen time is a "major factor" reducing reading, the report stresses England cannot blame technology alone. Author and teacher Onyinye Iwu told the inquiry that when asked why they do not read, students say: "Miss, but we have TikTok. What is the point? That is it. You have TikTok, you have Netflix, you have the film coming out; why would you read the book?"

Institutional failures bear significant responsibility. The inquiry found "little evidence" that the current National Year of Reading has influenced the core work of the Department for Education. It also criticised last year’s curriculum review as a "missed opportunity", highlighting that in 2023, only 1.5% of students studied a text by a writer of colour at GCSE.

Jonathan Douglas, chief executive of the National Literary Trust, argued this year’s initiative should be "turned into a decade of reading to sustain the foundations that are being laid". The report further identifies entrenched inequalities, noting boys are unconsciously discouraged from reading from birth, while children with special educational needs remain a "key priority group" entirely missing from current policy.