One in four disadvantaged children across the UK has fewer than ten books of their own at home*, and one in eight has none.
The Children’s Book Project seeks to tackle book poverty and to give every child the opportunity to own their own book. We believe in empowering children to choose a book they are motivated to read and in the power of reading communities. We put on book gifting events that are inclusive, joyful and have a tangible impact on every family that participates.
Poverty is by no means the only reason for a lack of books in many homes. Lack of time, negative experiences as a child or lack of confidence about their own reading skills or book choices can all undermine a family’s propensity to own books.
THE POWER OF A BOOK
Book ownership has been directly linked with improved mental health amongst children and a greater propensity to read for pleasure, whilst reading fluency itself has a significant impact on children’s successful progression through education. By age eleven, there is a 12-month language development gap between children from book rich homes books and those with fewer than ten books*. Our aim is to tackle the attainment gap arising from low book ownership. We want every child to feel part of their reading community and to identify with books that they have enjoyed.
WHO WE WORK WITH?
We work closely with women’s groups, children’s centres and schools to gift gently used books to children across London and Oxfordshire, forging links with settings whose communities may benefit most from access to free books.
In every instance we work with a provider to help them plan the most creative and enjoyable book gifting event.
HELP US CHANGE THEIR STORY
This year we will gift over 100,000 books to children via their schools and settings. The vast majority of these come from families happy to find new homes for the books their children have grown out of.
Please consider donating any new or gently used children’s books to us via one of our Book Hubs. We will help to ensure that these are placed directly into the hands of those families that will benefit most.
To date we have gifted to 370 schools and organisations across London and the South East where our core aim has been to address the disparity of book ownership amongst children and young people. At present one in eight disadvantaged children owns no books of his or her own, whilst one in four owns fewer than ten books*. In February 2021 we expanded to schools and other settings across the UK so that families nationwide can find new homes for the books their children have grown out of.
We help to address this book gap by gifting good quality, gently used books to children within communities with a high level of disadvantage. We work with schools that support > 25% pupil premium (a measure of disadvantage) but also with organisations that target discrete groups in need.
However, alongside this we also want to support reading communities and to foster enjoyable and immersive gifting events. We believe that a child will engage strongly with a book that he or she has chosen for themselves and that they can take home and keep. We work with settings to help them deliver creative, memorable gifting events that elevate books from their second-hand status to something desirable.
