Local MP Tessa is supporting a campaign run by The Reading Agency to encourage all primary school children to join their local library and take part in this year’s Summer Reading Challenge – the UK’s biggest reading promotion for primary school children.
The Challenge which begins on 14 July is for every child aged 4-11 years to read six books of their choice from their local library during the summer holidays. Children earn stickers along the way and will be given a certificate or “Olympic style” medal when they complete the Challenge. This is the 14th year of the Challenge and this year the theme is “Story Lab” which is set in a city hosting the Olympic Games www.story-lab.org.uk.
Over 20 popular children’s authors are supporting the campaign including children’s laureate Julia Donaldson and fellow award-winning writers Malorie Blackman, Charlie Higson, Anthony Horowitz, Michael Morpurgo, Michael Rosen and Jacqueline Wilson.
Tessa said; “It will be fantastic if parents and carers in Somerset take their children to our local libraries this summer and sign up to the Summer Reading Challenge if they are not already members. It’s free and makes reading fun which is a vital ingredient in building literacy. Last year 4,859 children in Somerset took part in the Challenge and I hope we will beat that figure this year and show our local libraries just how much we value them.”
This year libraries will be linking the Challenge to the Olympic and Paralympic Games, as the challenge is an official project in the London 2012 Festival – the finale of the Cultural Olympiad www.london2012.com/festival. Details of local events are available from local libraries.
Miranda McKearney, Chief Executive of The Reading Agency said “With so much pressure on libraries, this year of all years is the time to support the work libraries do to inspire children to enjoy reading. Research shows that children who use libraries are twice as likely to be above average readers and that children who take part in the Challenge go back to school with improved reading skills and a boost to their confidence.“
Tessa Munt
9th July 2012
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Media contacts
The Reading Agency – Mandy Pursey at FMcM Associates on 0207 405 7422 e-mail mandyp@fmcm.co.uk
The Reading Agency is an independent charity working to inspire more people to read more. It is funded by the Arts Council, and has a formal partnership with public library services (www.readingagency.org.uk)
Follow the Summer Reading Challenge on Facebook –
www.facebook.com/#!/SummerReadingChallengeUK
CILIP: the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals is the leading professional body for librarians, information specialists and knowledge managers. CILIP’s vision is a fair and economically prosperous society underpinned by literacy, access to information and the transfer of knowledge. CILIP is a registered charity, no. 313014. Visit www.cilip.org.uk for more information.
The Libraries All Party Parliamentary Group has been established to provide information and opportunities for debate about the role that libraries play in society and their future, with Justin Tomlinson as its Chair.
Libraries exist in a variety of places including schools, prisons, universities, government, private companies, law firms, colleges, health and public libraries. By developing literacy skills, providing access to information and enabling the transfer of knowledge libraries help build a fair and prosperous society. It is important that libraries are run by skilled staff with the right expertise.
Children’s University is run by the Children’s University (CU) Trust. For more information visit: www.childrensuniversity.co.uk
The London 2012 Cultural Olympiad is the largest cultural celebration in the history of the modern Olympic and Paralympic Movements. Spread over four years, it is designed to give everyone in the UK a chance to be part of London 2012 and inspire creativity across all forms of culture, especially among young people.
The culmination of the Cultural Olympiad is the London 2012 Festival, a spectacular 12-week nationwide celebration bringing together leading artists from across the world with the very best from the UK, from Midsummers Day on 21 June and running until the final day of the Paralympic Games on 9 September 2012.The London 2012 Festival will celebrate the huge range, quality and accessibility of the UK’s world-class culture including dance, music, theatre, the visual arts, fashion, film and digital innovation, giving the opportunity for people across the UK to celebrate the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Principal funders of the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival are Arts Council England, Legacy Trust UK and the Olympic Lottery Distributor. BP and BT are Premier Partners of the Cultural Olympiad and the London 2012 Festival.