[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-586376-105":59,"doc-detail-586376-en":131},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":124,"head_meta":126,"extra_data":128,"updated_unix":130},105,"en","children-and-young-peoples-reading-in-2026","Children and young people’s reading in 2026","","Reading shapes how children and young people learn, feel, and engage with the world, yet participation has been declining across the UK and internationally. This report examines 2026 reading behaviours, attitudes, and experiences using an Annual Literacy Survey of 125,375 participants aged 5–18 from 479 schools. It shows a small recovery in reading enjoyment and daily reading, while highlighting that engagement involves more than enjoyment alone. Key drivers include relevance and encouragement, with widening differences linked to free-school-meal uptake.",{"@graph":69,"@context":123},[70,84,106],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":40,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/children-and-young-peoples-reading-in-2026/586376/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/children-and-young-peoples-reading-in-2026/586376.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Quinn Holloway","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-12","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":105},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",12,{"@type":107,"mainEntity":108},"FAQPage",[109,115,119],{"name":110,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":112},"What trends does the report describe about reading engagement before 2026?","Question",{"text":113,"@type":114},"It describes a broader decline, with evidence suggesting fewer children and young people engaging with reading regularly and fewer adults reporting regular reading in free time.","Answer",{"name":116,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":117},"How did reading enjoyment change in 2026?",{"text":118,"@type":114},"Reading enjoyment rose in 2026 after four years of decline, with 36.1% of those aged 8 to 18 reporting they enjoyed reading in their free time, up from 32.7% in 2025.",{"name":120,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":121},"Does the report say that enjoyment and reading frequency fully overlap?",{"text":122,"@type":114},"No. Enjoyment and frequency are closely linked, but they do not fully overlap, since many children who do not enjoy reading still read and find value in it.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":125,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":127,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":129,"site_id":62},586376,1792159371,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":132},{"doc_id":129,"user_id":133,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":134,"doc_module":4,"category_id":39,"category_name":40,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":135,"file_id":136,"file_url":137,"file_type":138,"file_size":139,"view_count":105,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":140,"language":141,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":142,"faqs":143,"seo_title":144,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":145,"read_time":146,"preview_page_count":4},2336474466712,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_a8503ba1806abce46bf441b54a3ca4cd","Children and young people’s reading in 2026  \nUnderstanding how children and young people engage with reading  \nChristina Clark, Irene Picton and Aisha Arif National Literacy Trust  \nJune 2026  \n© National Literacy Trust 2026 0  \nReading shapes how children and young people learn, feel and engage with the world. Yet across the UK and internationally, it is becoming less central to  \neveryday life.  \nThis is not a challenge conĜned to one age group. In the UK, only half of adults now report reading regularly in their free time, with younger adults the least likely to do so. Among children, international evidence points to similar patterns.  \nFindings from the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study show that 10-year-olds in England and Northern Ireland report lower levels of reading  \nenjoyment than the global average.  \nThese trends suggest a broader shift in how reading is prioritised and experienced. Competing demands on time, changing habits and evolving forms of entertainment all play a role, but the result is clear: fewer children, young people and adults are engaging with reading regularly, and many are not experiencing  \nthe beneĜts it can bring.  \nThis matters because reading is linked not only to attainment but also to wellbeing, conĜdence, empathy and participation in society. When engagement declines, these wider beneĜts are also at risk , particularly for those who already face the greatest barriers.  \nIn response, 2026 marks the National Year of Reading, a nationwide effort to reenergise reading as a meaningful, accessible, everyday activity. Bringing together partners across sectors, it aims to support more children, young people and adults to Ĝ nd time, motivation and opportunities to read, with a particular  \nfocus on those most at risk of disengagement.  \nThis report  \nThis report builds on that context, offering the latest insights into children and  \nyoung people’s reading behaviours, attitudes and experiences in 2026, and  \nproviding an early signal of how these may be shifting as the National Year of  \nReading begins.  \nWe asked 125,375 children and young people aged 5 to 18 from 479 schools across the UK who took part in our Annual Literacy Survey about their reading in 2026  \n(see Appendix A for more information on the methodology and sample) .  \nThe report is structured in two parts. The Ĝrst part looks at children and young people’s reading enjoyment and how often they read in their free time, including  \n© National Literacy Trust 2026 1  \ndemographic differences and trends over time. These measures provide an overview of current levels of reading engagement and how these have changed in recent years.  \nThe second part looks more broadly at the role reading plays in children and  \nyoung people’s lives. It explores how children and young people experience  \nreading in relation to learning, understanding others, self-understanding and  \nwellbeing, as well as the wider factors that may help support reading, including  \ninterest and encouragement at home and at school.  \nWhat this report shows  \nAfter several years of decline, 2026 saw a small but important increase in both  \nreading enjoyment and daily reading. However, this report also shows that  \nreading engagement is about more than enjoyment alone. While children and  \nyoung people who enjoy reading and read regularly are the most likely to see reading as supporting their learning, wellbeing and understanding of themselves and others, many who do not enjoy reading are still reading and still Ĝ nding value in it. Overall, the Ĝ ndings highlight the continued importance of enjoyment,  \nrelevance and encouragement in shaping children and young people’s reading  \nlives.  \nMore speciĜcally, it shows that:  \nReading enjoyment rose in 2026 after four years of decline  \n􀁸 In 2026, 36.1% of children and young people aged 8 to 18 said that they enjoyed reading in their free time either very much or quite a lot, which is up from 32.7% in 2025.  \n􀁸 This","cbCaibHj3TPNrMbG","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaibHj3TPNrMbG","pdf",991195,34,"English","# Introduction\n## National Year of Reading context\n## Purpose and structure of the report\n# Key findings in 2026\n## Reading enjoyment changes\n## Daily reading changes\n## Relationship between enjoyment and frequency","[{\"question\":\"What trends does the report describe about reading engagement before 2026?\",\"answer\":\"It describes a broader decline, with evidence suggesting fewer children and young people engaging with reading regularly and fewer adults reporting regular reading in free time.\"},{\"question\":\"How did reading enjoyment change in 2026?\",\"answer\":\"Reading enjoyment rose in 2026 after four years of decline, with 36.1% of those aged 8 to 18 reporting they enjoyed reading in their free time, up from 32.7% in 2025.\"},{\"question\":\"Does the report say that enjoyment and reading frequency fully overlap?\",\"answer\":\"No. Enjoyment and frequency are closely linked, but they do not fully overlap, since many children who do not enjoy reading still read and find value in it.\"}]","Children and young people’s reading in 2026 | PDF",1792057743,86]