I am supporting a campaign run by charity The Reading Agency to encourage all primary school children to take part in this year’s Summer Reading Challenge - the UK’s largest reading-for-pleasure promotion.
The Summer Reading Challenge is organised in co-operation with public libraries across the UK, which last year got over 780,000 children borrowing, reading and talking about their favourite books.
This year’s challenge is called The Big Friendly Read, and is being organised in collaboration with The Roald Dahl Literary Estate to celebrate 100 years of the world’s favourite storyteller. It will feature some of Roald Dahl's best-loved characters and the amazing artwork of his principal illustrator, Sir Quentin Blake.
Encouraging children to read for pleasure is hugely important, so I’m delighted to support this campaign. There can’t be many better authors than Roald Dahl to show children that books can be fun and exciting, so this year’s challenge should be a big success. I hope parents, grandparents and carers in Fareham will take their children to the library over the summer to sign up for the challenge. I’m told that last year over 25,000 children in Hampshire took part, and I hope the charity can increase that number this year. As well as helping children, they’re doing a great job highlighting what a valuable asset local libraries are to us and our community.
Research published by The Reading Agency shows that reading for pleasure is a more powerful factor in life achievement than socio-economic background, and that children who use libraries are twice as likely to be above average readers. The Challenge builds confidence and independent reading, while preventing the dip in children’s reading levels during the long break from school.
To take part, all children need to do is sign up at their nearest library. They’ll receive a special collector’s folder and as they borrow and read at least six library books over the summer, they can collect six special cards to complete it. The cards all feature original Quentin Blake illustrations and explore some of most popular themes in Roald Dahl’s books such as invention, mischief and friendship.
Sue Wilkinson, CEO of The Reading Agency said:
‘The Summer Reading Challenge is developed and delivered in partnership with librarians across the country. At The Reading Agency, we believe that everything changes when we read and we know from our research how much fun families and children have when taking part in the Summer Reading Challenge. This year we hope Roald Dahl's fantastic characters, and Sir Quentin Blake's brilliant artwork, will inspire more children than ever to take part and make use of their local library throughout the summer and beyond.’
Neil MacInnes, President of the Society of Chief Librarians, said:
‘Public Libraries across the country are celebrating and promoting the joy of reading as part of the Summer Reading Challenge, providing a brilliant range of free activities to encourage children to pick up and enjoy books during the summer holidays. This year’s extra-special theme has led to a host of wonderful ideas, inspired by Roald Dahl’s unique and unforgettable stories. A wide range of activities are sure to inspire children to dive into the magical world of reading and there are lots of volunteering opportunities for young people to get actively involved in supporting Summer Reading Challenge events themselves.’
For more information on the Summer Reading Challenge including how to get involved and resources for schools, those interested can go to: