New research from Oxford University Press reveals that over a quarter of children wish their parents read with them more often

• Research unveiled to launch OUP’s Raise a Reader campaign, a three-year mission post-pandemic to help children become lifelong readers
• Findings show that 28% of children aged 7-11 want their parents and carers to read to or with them more often; 59% of parents also wish they read more with their children
• Parents and carers also recognise the benefit to their own wellbeing: 84% enjoy reading with their children, and 78% feel rewarded when they read with their child
• However, more than four in ten parents said they find it difficult to get their child to concentrate; 3 in 10 say that reading with their child is a challenge; nearly a quarter say screen time and gadgets get in the way of reading
• Louise Pentland and Sonali Shah pledge support as campaign ambassadors

Oxford, 29 September 2022: New research published by Oxford University Press (OUP) has revealed that over a quarter of children wish their parents read with them more often. Reading together is popular with adults too, with 84% of parents and carers also saying that they enjoy reading with their children. However, it can be a struggle, and 59% of parents wish they read more with their children.

43% of parents said it’s difficult to get their child to concentrate while reading together, and other challenges include avoiding distractions from screens and gadgets, not having enough time in the day or being able to establish a regular reading routine. Parents who read regularly themselves report that their children are also likely to be regular readers, with 73% agreeing that children seeing them reading was a powerful motivation to read as well.

80% of parents and carers said that they read with their child at least 2-3 times per week, but 1 in 4 weren’t sure how often they should be reading with children. Teachers understand that reading at home with adults is important for children to become regular readers, and 80% said they would like them to be reading together at least 4 to 5 days per week. Regular, shorter reading sessions can have a positive impact and most teachers’ preference was for parents to read with their children for at least 5-10 minutes per day.

The research polled 2000 parents with children aged 3-11, over 1000 children who took part via a CHILDWISE omnibus survey, and over 300 primary school teachers. Key findings also reveal that 86% of parents believe reading will have a positive impact on their child’s academic success later in life, and 80% believe that reading to their child improves the child’s wellbeing and mental health.

The research is unveiled as part of the launch of OUP’s Raise a Reader initiative: a three-year national campaign to help provide children and young people with the tools and opportunities to become lifelong readers in the wake of the pandemic.

Helen Freeman, Director of Oxford Children’s and Raise a Reader Project Director, said:

‘The research is especially timely in the wake of the pandemic, which exacerbated the learning gap particularly in children from low socioeconomic status families. We know from our previous OUP Word Gap research that children with poor vocabulary skills at age five are four times more likely to have reading difficulties in adulthood, twice as likely to be unemployed when they reach adulthood, and three times more likely to have mental health problems. Therefore, it’s more important than ever we ensure every child and young person has the tools and opportunities to become lifelong readers, and we’re proud to be working with the NLT to provide dedicated reading spaces across schools in Oxfordshire’s most disadvantaged and under-served communities. Other exciting plans include taking our brilliantly kitted-out Raise a Reader campervan to communities across England; giving out free books, sharing resources, arranging author events and having OUP reading experts on hand to help give tips on how to raise a reader for life. As our previous research shows: creating a love of reading at home, an activity that can be enjoyed by parents and children alike, will be a fundamental and powerful tool to help close the learning gap opened up by the pandemic.’

Despite the challenges, the survey showed that parents appreciated the far-reaching and long-term benefits of reading at home with their children:

- 97% considered it important for their children to be confident readers

- 85% agreed that ‘reading helps my child do better at school’

- More than 7 in 10 believe that being read to helps their child to go to sleep better, builds empathy and helps them to form friendships

Children also recognise the broader benefits of reading. Those questioned identified a broad range of aspects that they enjoyed about reading: with comments such as:

- “it teaches me how to read the world around me”

- “it can help me see how other people see the world”

- “it helps me to have a more creative mind”

- “expanding vocabulary”

To address the results of the research, OUP will be taking Raise a Reader to the communities, with a tour in November, visiting ten locations across England with lower levels of literacy. The reading roadshow will invite parents and children to visit a bespoke Raise a Reader campervan, packed full of free books, engaging activities, and reading resources. The tour will offer parents advice and resources helping break down the barriers to reading for pleasure, and the campervan will tour through cities visiting schools and stopping off to support libraries and bookshops. Oxford authors and illustrators will join the tour at each stop, including Winnie & Wilbur illustrator Korky Paul, husband-and-wife creators of The Perfect Fit, Naomi and James Jones, plus Paul Westmoreland, the author of OUP’s major young fiction autumn launch Rudy and the Wolf Cub. OUP will also provide support via a freedownloadable digital toolkit.

As part of the launch of the Raise a Reader campaign, OUP has also announced a collaboration with the National Literacy Trust and has joined the Primary School Library Alliance as a flagship partner. The ‘Oxfordshire Raise a Reader Programme’ will champion reading across 10 Oxfordshire schools in the first year with the goal of raising a generation of readers in schools and families in Oxfordshire’s most disadvantaged and under-served communities. Schools will receive a donation of 500 books each (300 books donated by OUP and 200 donated by independent publishers), as well as a range of soft furnishings and books storage, in order to create their own dedicated reading spaces. Schools will also have access to in-person specialist training to help develop effective whole-school reading strategies as well as receiving a subscription to Oxford Reading Buddy, a digital reading service of nearly 500 books, and the opportunity to host exciting author visits.

Author, Creator and Raise a Reader Ambassador, Louise Pentland said:

‘I am absolutely thrilled to be working with Raise a Reader. Reading and children’s literacy has been a passion project of mine for many years – it’s fundamental and these latest stats only prove how important it really is. Ultimately the goal is to help as many children as possible become lifelong readers – and there are many ways to do this – from education, to access, to understanding. Reading for pleasure has quite simply been a magical part of my life, and my children’s lives – so to help open this door to other children [and adults] simply fills me with joy.’

Tips for Parents and Carers

The reading experts at OUP have come up with their top 5 tips to help raise a reader:

• Make it a habit: reading as part of a bedtime routine every weekday evening can start as young as babies and the research shows that children up to age 11 still love bedtime stories
• Help children to concentrate by switching off electronic devices and leaving them in another room: out of sight is out of mind
• Show a love of reading and children will want to copy you: whether it’s a book, magazine or recipe, let them see you read and invite them to take a look
• Suggest organising a book swap with other parents or visit your local library to discover new books for your child to enjoy
• Find other times in the day to fit in reading together – encourage children to read menus or food labels; read signs and posters when you are out and about; take a book or magazine with you for car or bus journeys or while waiting for an appointment. Little and often can be easiest, and it all counts!

ENDS

NOTES TO EDITORS

OUP spoke to parents, teachers and children across the UK, between May and July 2022.

Figures for the parent research are based on fieldwork conducted by Opinium on behalf of OUP.

Fieldwork was undertaken between 7th and 12th July 2022, amongst 2,000 UK parents of children

aged 3 to 11. The children’s online survey was conducted by CHILDWISE on behalf of OUP, surveying

1255 children aged 7-11 years in June to July 2022 via the CHILDWISE Playground Buzz. The teacher

survey was conducted by OUP, gathering responses from 339 teachers across the UK in May 2022.

Press Contacts

For further information or to request interviews, please contact:

Hannah McMillan: hannah.mcmillan@midaspr.co.uk | 07971 086649

Amelia Knight: amelia.knight@midaspr.co.uk | 07771 791210

For NLT questions please contact:

Rachel Samuel: rachel.samuel@literacytrust.org.uk | 07399 447705