đź“° Adult Literacy News Summary
Babies offered first library card at birth
13-Aug-2026 - UK
Babies are being offered a library card at birth in an effort to support early reading skills. Parents in Cumbria's Westmorland and Furness Council area can sign their child up for the scheme as part of the normal process of registering a birth, and each card will feature a character called Peep the Sheep from a book written by local author Jon Buxton. They will also receive a free book and an information card listing baby and toddler activities and resources at their local libraries.
Read moreNew recruits at Dyslexia Scotland to lead pioneering teacher training programme
12-Aug-2026 - UK
Dyslexia Scotland has appointed two Education Programme Officers to deliver its national Professional Recognition programme in Dyslexia and Inclusive Practice. Victoria Armet and Carol Graham have been appointed to the roles on a job-share basis following a highly competitive recruitment process. The roles will involve strategic programme management, the development of a community of practice and sharing of learning, knowledge and evidence from the programme. Primary school teacher Victoria Armet is an alumnus of the programme, with experience as a group leader on the panel assessing participants’ submissions and sharing of learning from the programme. Since the programme's inception, 265 educators have taken part, with 133 gaining Professional Recognition certification so far. The current cohort’s submissions are due to be reviewed this autumn so this number of Professional Recognition awards will increase.
Read moreLine-up for 2026 Wiltshire literary festival announced
12-Aug-2026 - UK
The Mere Literary Festival, taking place from October 12 to 18, will once again bring leading UK authors to the Wiltshire town for its 29th year. With events spanning fiction, crime, history, travel, culture, cooking, and motor racing, organisers say the week-long festival offers "something for everyone." The festival supports local charities, including Seeds for Success, Read Easy, and the Mere Link Scheme, which help individuals and families across the Blackmore Vale and Vale of Wardour.
Read moreWe’re reading less. And it’s making us stupid
11-Aug-2026 - UK
Books have never been trendier, but studies show that as more and more things compete for our frazzled attention spans, we’re reading less and less. This is a problem because reading has a wealth of cognitive benefits that we’re in danger of missing out on. To find out why declining literacy could affect everything from memory to IQ, Madeleine Finlay speaks to the Guardian’s science editor, Ian Sample. She also hears from Prof Falk Huettig, an experimental psychologist at the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics and author of The Perks of Being a Bookworm.
Read moreGovernment blocks Reform mayor’s residency rule change for adult education
11-Aug-2026 - UK
The government has blocked Reform UK mayor Andrea Jenkyns’ planned introduction of a three-year residency rule for adult learners in Greater Lincolnshire. Last month, skills minister Jacqui Smith ordered all mayors with devolved adult skills policy powers to fund any student who is resident in the UK from their first day of learning. The order overrode Jenkyns’ decision to change funding eligibility for Greater Lincolnshire adult learners to at least three years from August 1, when the Reform UK mayor took control of adult skills for the first time. The Greater Lincolnshire mayor also plans to cut funding for English language lessons aimed at migrants from next year and instead fund literacy and numeracy courses aimed at “native” Lincolnshire residents. The residency rule order does not impact this change.
Read moreVolunteers needed to help people discover joy of reading
10-Aug-2026 - UK
A project called Read Easy is coming to Swindon libraries. Read Easy offers free and confidential one-to-one coaching for adults who want to improve their reading skills and build confidence. Around 2.4m adults in England struggle to read or cannot read at all, limiting opportunities in everyday life, work and education. Ahead of the programme launching, Read Easy is looking for volunteer Literacy Specialists to support its team of volunteer reading coaches.
Read more10 Easy To Finish Books That Make Reading A Daily Habit
10-Aug-2026 - UK
Struggling to read consistently? These 10 easy-to-finish books are short, gripping, and rewarding enough to keep you coming back every day. Whether you're recovering from a reading slump or trying to replace endless scrolling with something more meaningful, these novels make building a daily reading habit feel effortless instead of intimidating.
Read moreTo fix education, fix the economy first
07-Aug-2026 - UK
One of the best illustrations of the importance of economic growth for a society is that when it is weak for long enough, you start to hear complaints about specific things going wrong in specific domains, which ultimately all turn out to be downstream of economic stagnation. In the UK, this is happening more frequently with education. One of England’s few policy success stories of the past two decades has been in schools, where results have been steadily climbing up the international rankings. Across the Atlantic we have seen the opposite: mediocre performance for US schools, with the bottom portion of students faring especially badly. The same is true of adult skills, where much has rightly been made of the OECD’s finding that 30 per cent of US adults have literacy skills typical of a 10-year-old. So, with Britain’s education system and skills outperforming America’s, have wages followed suit?
Read morePoor early language is biggest barrier to improving literacy in deprived areas, Reception teachers say
07-Aug-2026 - UK
Poor early language skills, particularly in the most deprived areas, have emerged as one of the most prominent barriers to improving literacy standards in England's primary schools, according to teachers. Research from national children’s literacy charity, Bookmark Reading Charity, conducted by Teacher Tapp, warns that teachers working in more disadvantaged communities are significantly more likely to identify poor early language as a challenge impacting literacy in school than their counterparts in affluent areas.
Read moreNew learning centre inspires more people to read
07-Aug-2026 - UK
A new learning centre in Folkestone is encouraging more people to read, figures suggest. The Folkestone Library and Community Learning Centre opened on 26 May and, offering books, local history resources and adult education facilities, has since welcomed 10,648 visits in June. Book issues also rose from 2,507 in June 2022 to 4,811 in June, a demonstrating a 92% increase in people wanting to read. Kent County Council's (KCC) deputy leader Brian Collins said: "In just a short time, the new library and Community Learning Centre has become a vibrant hub for residents of all ages."
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