đź“° Adult Literacy News Summary
Chichester's Children’s BookFest faces the challenges ahead
02-Jan-2026 - UK
Chichester-based charity Children’s BookFest says it enjoyed “record impact” in 2025 as it commits to supporting the Government’s 2026 National Year of Reading. The charity, dedicated to inspiring a lifelong love of reading, is celebrating its most far-reaching year to date – a year that saw thousands of Sussex children receive their own free, signed copy of a book, given to them by the author. This was set against a backdrop of alarming new research, showing that reading for pleasure among young people has reached a 20-year low.
Read moreThe Guardian view on the National Year of Reading 2026: time to start a healthy habit for life
29-Dec-2025 - UK
A Children’s Booker prize, library cards for newborns and a major campaign – initiatives to encourage a love of books in children are a cause for celebration. Reading to children from a young age leads to greater happiness, educational success, empathy and social mobility – no wonder the government wants to encourage everyone to do it more.
Read moreChatGPT, cooking and Christopher Walken: how parents got their kids to love reading in 2025
29-Dec-2025 - UK
Fewer children are reading for fun - but parents are trying everything from AI to dramatic voices to keep them engaged. According to an April report from HarperCollins UK, parents have lost the love of reading to their children, with fewer than half of gen Z parents calling the activity “fun for me”. According to the survey of 1,596 parents of children aged zero to 13, almost one in three found reading “more a subject to learn” than an experience to enjoy.
Read more"All children are still into Roald Dahl"
27-Dec-2025 - UK
Next year is the National Year of Reading, a campaign to address the decline in reading among children, young people and adults, and councils have been asked to stage events. Some set to go ahead include "Book Bingo, external" in Warwickshire, where library members can read or listen to 12 books to complete a bingo card and enter a prize draw. A new book club starts in January at The Hive in Worcester, with the genre changing each session. The first meeting kicks off with comedy and satire, "a chance to laugh, reflect and explore witty storytelling in good company". Newport Community Library in Shropshire urged people to pick up a book instead of "doom-scrolling, external" and said: "You just might find you feel a lot better for it."
Read moreMinisters Lawless and Harkin urge adults to build confidence with new devices and boost essential skills in the New Year
26-Dec-2025 - Ireland
Many adults across the country opened smartphones, tablets or laptops this Christmas—but for some, the excitement is mixed with uncertainty about how to use them confidently. Today, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science James Lawless TD and Minister of State for Further Education, Apprenticeship, Construction and Climate Skills Marian Harkin TD are encouraging adults to take the next step and build their digital, literacy, financial and numeracy skills through courses available nationwide.
Read moreUNESCO Identifies Best Practices in Youth and Adult Literacy through the “Chiapas Puede” Initiative, One of the Largest in Latin America
24-Dec-2025 - Mexico
Around 13 out of every 100 young people and adults in Chiapas have not had the opportunity to learn to read, write, or to perform basic arithmetic. As an act of social justice and inclusion, the “Chiapas Puede” (Chiapas Can) program, promoted by the state government, has set a goal to reduce illiteracy to less than 4% by December 2026. The initiative is massive in scale, reaching a population equivalent to the entire primary and secondary student body of Uruguay or Costa Rica. It involves over 120,000 learners and thousands of literacy educators, the majority of whom are university students and community volunteers.
Read morePreparations made for National Year of Reading 2026 launch
24-Dec-2025 - UK
As preparations are being made to launch the National Year of Reading in 2026, Bradford Council has been busy working with the National Literacy Trust (NLT) to engage with schools, youth services and the NHS. The National Year of Reading is a national campaign 2026 to tackle the steep decline in reading amongst young people and adults.
Read moreLiteracy charity Bringing Words to Life supports vulnerable adults in Northumberland with ÂŁ10,000 boost
18-Dec-2025 - UK
A charity has helped dozens of vulnerable adults in Northumberland improve their reading and writing skills thanks to a £10,000 boost. Since 2013, Bringing Words to Life has worked across Newcastle, Gateshead, and Northumberland to improve literacy and communication skills in some of the country’s lowest-performing areas, as identified by the National Literacy Trust. Each year, over 700 people, aged 22 to 70, gain confidence and skills in reading, writing, and self-expression through their programmes
Read moreDulwich children perform carols to raise money for local charity teaching adults to read
14-Dec-2025 - UK
Children from Dulwich sang carols in London Bridge last week to raise money for a local charity which teaches adults how to read. Young singers from the Dulwich College Kindergarten and Infants’ School (DUCKS) filled Hay’s Galleria on Wednesday, 3 December, where they delighted audiences with festive carols. All the funds raised by the concert have been donated to Read Easy Southwark, a charity teaching adults to read which is completely run by volunteers
Read moreWoman wins award for dedication to learning later in life
14-Dec-2025 - UK
A West Berkshire woman has recently won an award for learning to read later in life. According to data by Read Easy West Berkshire, more than seven per cent of adults across the UK either cannot read or have very poor reading ability. The team at Read Easy West Berkshire work to tackle this issue by offering free one-to-one reading courses. Team leader Elaine Brichard explains: “We’re here to help them see the benefits of improving their reading ability, and not to feel ashamed or embarrassed about it and one of our readers was recently awarded the Terry Stares Award by the West Berkshire Community Learning Team.”
Read more