The document provides a collection of over 50 quotes and citations that highlight the importance and benefits of reading, literacy, and creating a culture of reading. Key points from the quotes include: developing literacy skills has economic and health benefits; reading for pleasure is associated with educational and life outcomes; school and public libraries play an important role in fostering reading; and choosing books and discussing texts empowers students and improves reading attainment. Establishing a positive environment and culture of reading in schools and society can have wide-ranging benefits.

1. Joy Court @Joyisreading; e-mail: joy@sla.org.uk
Powerpoint References
“States should ensure that people of all ages, regardless of social class, religion, ethnicity and gender are provided
with the necessary resources and opportunities to develop sufficient and sustainable literacy skills and knowledge”
Valtin , R et al (2016) A Declaration of European Citizens’Right to Literacy. ELINET
People who read for 30 mins a day live, on average, for at least two years longer
Bavishi,A., Slade,M and Levy, B. A chapter a day: Association of book readingwith longevity Social Science&
Medicine,164,(September 2016), 44–48
Reading skills are associated with higher earnings
Crawford, C and Cribb, J.( 2015) The Link between Childhood ReadingSkills and AdultOutcomes: Analysisof a Cohort of
British Children (IFS BriefingNote BN169), Institute of Education
37% of people who rate their health as ‘very poor’ are functionally illiterate compared to 11% with literacy skills
Department for Business,Innovation and Skills(2011),Skillsfor Life survey: Appendix of tables.DfBIS
If every child left primary school with the reading skills they needed, the UK economy could be more than
£32.1billion larger by 2025
Read On. Get On. (2014) How readingcan help children escapepoverty. Save the Children on behalf of the Read On.
Get On. campaign http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/sites/default/files/images/Read_On_Get_On.pdf
Reading Outcomes Framework
https://readingagency.org.uk/news/Outcomes%20Framework%20Toolkit_FINAL.pdf
‘being more enthusiastic about reading and being a frequent reader was more of an advantage, on its own, than
having well educated parents in good jobs’ OECD.(2002) Reading for Change: performance and engagement across
countries – results from PISA2000. OECD Publishing.
‘Unless children have learned to read, the rest of the curriculum is a secret garden to which they will never enjoy
access.’ Department for Education (UK) (2010) The Importance of Teaching - The Schools White Paper 2010,CM 7980
“..children who read for pleasure made more progress in maths, vocabulary and spelling between the ages of 10 and
16 than those who rarely read.”
Sullivan,A.and Brown, M (2013) Social inequalities in cognitive scores at age 16: The role of reading, CLS WorkingPaper
2013/10.Centre for Longitudinal Studies
http://www.scottishbooktrust.com/learning/teachers-librarians/first-ministers-reading-challenge
“Children who love reading will read more and, over time, choose literature which is more demanding and suitably
stretching. It creates a virtuous circle: as the amount a child reads increases, their reading attainment improves,
which in turn encourages them to read more. All reading makes a difference, but evidence suggests that reading for
pleasure makes the most “
Clark,C. and de Soyza, S. (2011), Mapping the interrelationships of reading enjoyment, attitudes, behaviour and reading
attainment. National Literacy Trust.
http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/research/nlt_research/3728_mapping_the_interrelationships_of_reading_enjoyment_
attitudes_behaviour_and_attainment
“ We can’t promise that reading books will always “work”. Not every child has naturalbent or will want to read. But
what we can promise is that it will often work and that we have to be sure that every child who wants to read is
given that opportunity” Nick Tucker, The Rough Guide to Children’s Books
“There is no such thing as a reluctant reader. A reluctant reader is a child for whom an adult has not found the right
book” Paul Jennings
‘for England and in almost all other countries there is a positive association between frequency of reading for
pleasure and reading attainment’.
Twist, L., Schagen, I. and Hodgson, C. (2007).Readers and Reading: the National Report for England 2006(PIRLS:
Progress in International ReadingLiteracy Study). Slough: NFER.

2. Joy Court @Joyisreading; e-mail: joy@sla.org.uk
Clark, C. and Teravainen, A. (2017). Celebrating Reading for Enjoyment: Findings from our Annual Literacy Survey
2016. London: National Literacy Trust.
To benefit from reading pupils need to: “work out what reading is good for” Meek, M. (1982) Learningto read.
London: The Bodley Head
“People who choose to read, and enjoy doing so, in their spare time are more likely to reap all of these wider
benefits. It is clear that negative attitudes towards reading for pleasure have a much wider negative impact on both
the individual and society as a whole, and therefore it is essential that nationally we create a more positive attitude
towards reading” Finch, Dawn (2015)Reading for pleasure and empowerment. CILIP
https://www.cilip.org.uk/blog/reading-pleasure-empowerment
‘Not every child comes from a reading home. Sometimes, these children are denied the cognitive, social and cultural
advantages that reading for pleasure provides because their schools do not have a reading culture either. These
children are doubly let down’ www.justreadcampaign.co.uk
‘• Promote family literacy programmes focused on both parents and children. Their aims should be to help parents
improve their skills and confidence to engage and motivate their children to both develop their language, and to read
for pleasure.
• Support libraries in maintaining a literate learning environment and increase their accessibility, particularly for
disadvantaged learners, whether children or adults.’
European Commission (2012) EU High Level Group of Experts on Literacy- Final Report. PublicationsOfficeof the
European Union http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/education_culture/repository/education/policy/school/doc/literacy-
report_en.pdf
“Imagine a school where pupils read regularly and talk about books; a place where browsing through the
bookshelves is normal and recommending books to friends a natural part of classroom discourse. A fantasy? A dream
world? Could such a school possibly exist?” Prue Goodwin
“The visibility and availability of books and other reading materials are key components of a reading culture at
home, in schools and throughout society.
Schools should provide a wide range of reading materials that attractsboys and girls of all ages and interests.
School and public libraries can play a significant role in helping and inspiring pupils to find reading material that they
can relate to.” European Commission (2012) EU High Level Group of Experts on Literacy- Final Report.
Recommendations for School Governors
 Implement reading across the curriculum with the notion that every teacher is a reading teacher.
 Ensure all schools see literacy as their core business and develop a vision for literacy within their school.
 Provide financial resources for school and classroom libraries, computers, etc.
European Commission (2012) EU High Level Group of Experts on Literacy- Final Report.
‘The way to get children reading is to leave the library door open and let them read anything and everything they
want.’ Terry Pratchett
‘This is irrefutable, but sometimes overlooked. The school library is a foundation for the school’s literacy
programmes and a catalyst for the development of lifelong readers. It is where they get the spark that turns them
from learning to read to enjoying reading’
New Zealand,National Library CurriculumServices,2010
Evidence from the USA, Australia and Canada found that:
• School investment in libraries affects educational attainment
• More significant than wealth or level of education in the community
Barrett, L Effective School Libraries:Evidenceof Impact on Student Achievement. School Librarian, 58 (3)136-139.
Young people with a reading age above the expected level for their age are twice as likely to be school library users
as their peers with a reading level below that expected for their age’ Clarke,C. (2010) LinkingSchool Libraries and
Literacy: Young people’s readinghabits and attitudes to their school library,and an exploration of the relationship
between school library useand school attainment.London: National Literacy Trust

3. Joy Court @Joyisreading; e-mail: joy@sla.org.uk
The role of the environment, a relaxed ethos, and the space and support for choice and conversation about texts was
also seen to be crucial
Cremin, T., Swan, J. and Mukherjee, S.J. (2012) Report to CarnegieTrust UK and CILIP on a two-stage study of the
Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Shadowing Scheme
http://www.cilip.org.uk/sites/default/files/documents/CKG%20Shadowing%20OU%20Research%20-
%20Full%20Report.pdf
Social Reading Environments. Open University https://researchrichpedagogies.org/research/theme/social-reading-
environments
‘Children need frequent, regular and sustained opportunities to talk together about the books that they are reading
as a whole class. The more experience they have of talking together like this, the better they get at making explicit
the meanings that a text holds for them, helping the class as a whole to reach shared understanding of ideas and
issues. Talking about books is supportive to all readers and writers but is especially empowering for children who find
literacy difficult’ CLPE. (2014) Reading for Pleasure- what we know works.
https://www.clpe.org.uk/library-and-resources/research/reading-pleasure-what-we-know-works
ContinYou Reading Club Research (2002) http://www.npi.org.uk/files/8713/7544/7706/reading_clubs_evaluation.pdf
Scholastic (2015) Kids and Family Reading Report https://www.scholastic.co.uk/readingreport/key-findings
Time to Read. Anderson, R.C, Wilson,P.Tand Fielding, L.G (1988) Growth in Readingand How Children Spend Their
Time Outsideof School,Reading Research Quarterly, 23, 285-303
• Choice empowers students
• Valuing student choices values the student
• Choice leads to real and meaningful conversations
• Choice helps establish and deepen relationships
• Choice leads to independence
Skeeters, K. et.al. (2016) The Top Five Reasons We Love GivingStudents Choicein Reading English Leadership
Quarterly, 38, (3), 6-7
Print is Preferred.David,Alison.(2016) PrintMatters Research https://www.egmont.co.uk/research/printmatters/
“We read to children for all the same reasons we talk with children: to reassure, to entertain, to bond, to inform or
explain, to arouse curiosity, to inspire. But in reading aloud, we also: condition the child’s brain to associate reading
with pleasure; create back ground knowledge; build vocabulary; [and] provide a reading role model”
Trelease, J.(2013) Read-aloud Handbook (7th ed), Viking-Penguin
‘Our prisons are full of them, full of those we have failed. Many remain lonely and marginalised all their lives. The
right book, the right author,the right parent, the right teacher, the right librarian, at the right time, might have
saved some of them at least, made the difference, shone a light into a dark life, turned that life around.’
Morpurgo, Michael.(2016) The power of stories:Michael Morpurgo's full Book Trust lecture
https://www.michaelmorpurgo.com/michael-morpurgo-book-trust-lecture/
If you need more for advocacy try these 50 Inspiring quotes about reading!
http://ebookfriendly.com/best-quotes-books-reading/