The National Literacy Trust has asked children about reading for pleasure since 2005. Enjoyment fell to its lowest level in 2025 and edged up in 2026. The children themselves say what would help: books linked to what they already love, and the freedom to pick.
AI-generated image, not a photograph of a real person or place.
36.1% of 8 to 18s enjoy reading
Follow their interests
Let them choose
Every kind of reading counts
Enjoyment first
THE SHORT ANSWER
Enjoyment has fallen, but it can turn.
From surveys of over 100,000 UK children a year, and a study that followed thousands from age 5 to 16.
ENJOYMENT
A long slide, a small rise
In 2025 just 32.7% of 8 to 18-year-olds said they enjoyed reading in their free time, the lowest in 20 years. In 2026 it rose to 36.1%, the first increase since 2021.
In a study of about 6,000 young people, those who read for pleasure made more progress in maths, vocabulary and spelling between 10 and 16 than those who rarely read.
Pick a reason to see how many 8 to 18-year-olds said it would motivate them to read. The bar shows how often it was chosen compared with the others.
Based on the National Literacy Trust, Children and young people's reading in 2025 (114,970 responses).
TWO NUMBERS WORTH KNOWING
Enjoyment and habit go together.
From 125,375 children and young people in 479 UK schools, early 2026.
36.1%
8 to 18-year-olds who enjoy reading in their free time
Up from 32.7% in 2025, with the largest rises among 14 to 18-year-olds. Among 5 to 8-year-olds, enjoyment was higher, at 61.6%.
ENJOYMENT · 2026
49.8%
Readers who enjoy it and read every day
Of children who enjoyed reading, 49.8% read daily in their free time, compared with 4.5% of those who did not enjoy it.
DAILY READING · 2026
Source: National Literacy Trust, Children and young people's reading in 2026. Socio-economic gaps in enjoyment and daily reading widened in 2026.
WHAT HELPS
Make reading their own.
These ideas come from what children told the National Literacy Trust, and from the long-running British Cohort Study.
Connect to films and hobbies
Look for books and articles linked to the series, games or hobbies a child already loves.
Let them pick
A quarter of 8 to 18-year-olds said the freedom to choose what they read would motivate them.
Count every format
Comics, song lyrics, news, fan fiction and fiction all came up as things reluctant readers still read.
Keep the library habit
In the cohort study, reading books often, visiting the library regularly and reading newspapers together had a strong effect on progress.
AI-generated image, not a photograph of a real person or place.
THE LONG VIEW
What reading for fun did over six years.
AI-generated image, not a photograph of a real person or place.
Researchers at the Institute of Education followed children in the 1970 British Cohort Study. Comparing children from the same backgrounds with the same test scores at 5 and 10, those who read books often at 10 and more than once a week at 16 did better in maths, vocabulary and spelling at 16.
Reading for pleasure was linked more strongly to progress between 10 and 16 than parents' level of education. The combined effect of reading books often, going to the library regularly and reading newspapers at 16 was four times the advantage of having a parent with a degree.
Questions
Questions people ask
How many children enjoy reading?
In 2026, 36.1% of 8 to 18-year-olds told the National Literacy Trust they enjoyed reading in their free time, up from 32.7% in 2025, the lowest level since the survey began asking in 2005.
Do younger children enjoy reading more?
Yes. Among 5 to 8-year-olds, 61.6% said they enjoyed reading in 2026, although this fell slightly from 62.6% in 2025.
Does reading for fun help at school?
A study of about 6,000 young people found those who read for pleasure made more progress in maths, vocabulary and spelling between 10 and 16 than those who rarely read.
What gets reluctant readers reading?
Children most often named material linked to a favourite film or TV series (38.1%) or to their interests and hobbies (37.1%).
Do comics and lyrics count?
Children who did not enjoy reading still chose song lyrics, news, fiction, comics and fan fiction, which the National Literacy Trust suggests are ways to re-engage them.
