£81 billion a year in lost earnings and welfare spending due to low levels of literacy.
Everything changes when you read.
We’re a UK charity with a mission to empower people of all ages to read.
Help change lives through reading
Reading for pleasure and empowerment makes us more aware and informed. It helps us grow our imaginations. It makes us more empathetic and understanding of other people and cultures. It supports our health and wellbeing. It increases our ability to learn new skills. It helps us to communicate our ideas more effectively. It opens doors. It brings joy.
Please donate to support our work.
Our Research
Research and evidence is central to helping us achieve our mission. We speak to people of all ages across the UK to understand how and why they read, the successes and challenges they face and how our work can make a real difference.
1 in 4 children don’t reach the expected level of reading by the age of 11
Featured booklist: Big Sporting Read
Resources for Librarians
November Booklist 2024 - Spine-tinglers & Nail-biters
As we enter the cold and dark months, we have created a booklist filled with our favourite spine-tinglers and nail-biters to captivate readers who enjoy…
Kirsten Barrett's Books of Belonging
For this year’s Teachers’ Reading Challenge we are exploring ‘Diverse Realities’ and have asked expert educators to give us their recommendations on topics within that…
Whispering Hollow by Rachel Burge - Discussion Guide & Activity Sheet
*If you go down to the woods today . . . you're in for a scary surprise. Creepy and atmospheric, join Pippa as she battles…
Reading Friends Participation Monitoring Form
The new form for October 2024-October 2025. We encourage monthly submission of the simplified form, but there are two important dates highlighted (Jan 2025 and…
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Latest News
The Summer Reading Challenge celebrates 25 years of encouraging young readers
This year, we’re celebrating the remarkable success of our cross-authority Summer Reading Challenge model and the 25th anniversary of the…
Behind the scenes of the Radio 2 Book Club
We work with library staff from across the UK to choose the books for the Radio 2 Book Club. We’ve spoken to a few of our panel members to get a glimpse behind the scenes of selecting the shortlist.
Vacancy: Research and Evaluation Officer
At The Reading Agency, we have a reputation of robust and insightful research and we are looking for a Research…
Library Facts
Explore key facts about libraries, including the numbers of libraries, the demographics of library users and the outcomes of using libraries.
Reading Facts
We want to create a world where everyone is reading their way to a better life. Explore UK-wide reading statistics and facts.
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