On July 7, our Head of Coram Beanstalk, Amy Lewis, was delighted to attend the launch of the National Year of Reading announced by Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson at 10 Downing Street.

The campaign, a collaboration between the Department for Education and the National Literacy Trust, aims to reverse a concerning decline in reading for pleasure. In 2025, just one in three young people aged 8 to 18 reported enjoying reading in their free time. The National Year of Reading will position reading as a powerful contemporary activity and will aim to engage new audiences in reading and to change the national reading culture for good. Bringing together parents, schools, libraries, businesses and literacy experts, the campaign aims to foster a love of reading for pleasure in children and young people, ensuring all children get the best start in life.  

Coram Beanstalk is proud to support this initiative and knows first-hand how life-changing becoming a reader can be. Our network of trained reading helpers supported more than 7000 children last year, sharing books, building relationships, sparking curiosity and creating readers. We are committed to getting behind this campaign and are grateful for the opportunity to shine a national spotlight on the importance of reading for pleasure.

I was incredibly proud to represent Coram Beanstalk at Number 10 for the announcement of the National Year of Reading 2026 by Secretary of State for Education and Minister for women and equality, Brigid Phillipson.  This Year of Reading aims to engage 100,000 reading volunteers and attract 1m new library users - a campaign we can really get behind with our work.

My invitation had been extended as I, along with some other great people in the sector have formed a collaborative network of charities that all  promote children's reading engagement - The Literacy Link. We now have nearly 50 organisations represented in The Literacy Link and it will become a key way of engaging the sector during the National Year of Reading with coordination led by the Fair Education Alliance.

Amy Lewis

Coram Beanstalk has been selected as one of 12 charity partners supporting the National Literacy Trust with delivery of the National Year of Reading's aims. As the lead delivery partner for the volunteering arm of the campaign, we are proud to assist by training and supporting volunteers to share their passion for reading with a children via our one-to-one primary school programme.

Find out more about becoming a reading helper with us