đź“° Adult Literacy News Summary
The heart of learning: Spotlight on school libraries in the UK and Ireland
20-Mar-2026 - UK
What if the most important room in a school isn’t a classroom, but the one that unlocks every other door to learning? In schools with well-funded and professionally staffed libraries, student achievement and wellbeing rises – yet thousands of young people still attend schools without one.
Read moreTunbridge Wells adult education courses 'being reviewed' after funding cut
20-Mar-2026 - UK
Adult education courses in Tunbridge Wells are now under review after the Government changed focus on learning to "adult skills" and slashed funding. Kent County Council (KCC) is scrutinising the provision of adult education in some areas of the county, which includes Tunbridge Wells.
Read more5 reasons parents say they can't find time to read with their kids – and what actually helps
19-Mar-2026 - UK
A major UK survey reveals a sharp fall in parents reading, playing and chatting at home. What lies behind the five hidden barriers shaping early literacy? In 2025, only 45.9% of UK parents read daily with their children, a decline from previous years, according to the National Literacy Trust. Five main barriers include work schedules, cost of activities, limited local options, cost of resources, and lack of support. Discover how small changes and structural support can enhance the home learning environment and improve early literacy outcomes.
Read moreRoom to Read’s Hong Kong annual gala raises HKD10 million for global children’s education
16-Mar-2026 - Hong Kong
Room to Read, the non-profit supporting literacy and gender equality in education worldwide, held its Hong Kong gala on Mar. 6, raising HKD10.18 million (USD1.3 million) in donations to support its global programmes.
Read moreAdult learning deserves a national conversation
16-Mar-2026 - UK
Too often policy is made without hearing from the people delivering it. A new APPG inquiry into adult education aims to reverse that by gathering evidence from across the FE sector. Jonathan Brash (MP for Hartlepool, and chair of the APPG for Further Education and Lifelong Learning) announced an inquiry into adult education which will explore five key areas: economic growth, skills and workforce needs, social mobility and inclusion, health, wellbeing and community resilience, policy, funding and the future of lifelong learning and learning from across the UK and beyond.
Read moreRead Easy South & East Wiltshire raising awareness of work
14-Mar-2026 - UK
A charity that helps adults learn to read has been raising awareness of its work. Two volunteers with Read Easy South & East Wiltshire, affiliated to the national charity Read Easy UK, spoke with members of the public during a session in Salisbury.
Read moreAlmost half of England’s library staff axed during austerity
13-Mar-2026 - UK
Library staff across England have been cut by almost half since 2010, leaving services stretched and communities without vital support after years of austerity, says UNISON. Research by the union, based on data provided by England’s councils, shows staffing levels fell by 47% between 2010 and 2025. Libraries directly employed 17,902 staff in 2010/11. That figure fell to 9,497 by 2024/25, amounting to a loss of 8,406 full-time roles.
Read more"It’s like a giant book club": how schools are getting children excited about reading again
13-Mar-2026 - UK
Research has shown there is a reading for pleasure crisis among children in the UK, where enjoyment of books has fallen to its lowest level in two decades. Not so here at Christ Church primary, a tiny Church of England school tucked behind the maze of HS2 construction works in Camden, north London, where children fizz with excitement about books.
Read moreLinguistics professor Victor Kuperman awarded a 2026 Killam Fellowship
11-Mar-2026 - Canada
Kuperman’s research project will focus on using AI to improve adult literacy, especially for newcomers to Canada. Primarily, it will work with learners of English as a second or additional language — and with Canada being the immigrant country that it is, there’s plenty of need for that. Someone who speaks Portuguese will need a slightly different output than someone who speaks Arabic, for example, because learners of English face different challenges with the language depending on what other language they speak. The novel part is this very personalized education — this customized preparation of reading materials that will adjust to that specific person’s proficiency as well as which first language they speak.
Read moreWhen literacy thrives, our businesses thrive too
10-Mar-2026 - UK
A week on from World Book Day and many parents and caregivers will still clearly recall the early morning scramble for costumes, last-minute crafting or the frantic search for something that vaguely resembled a book character. Beyond the costumes, though, World Book Day offered a useful moment to pause and think about reading and our relationship with books and literacy.
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