New BookTrust research shows children’s love of reading can dip sharply at the critical moment they start primary school, with the proportion of children reported to love reading falling from 55% at age four to just 44% at age five.
The children’s reading charity is today (2nd July) launching a new evidence-informed guide for primary schools and nurseries to help protect reading for enjoyment during the crucial transition into Reception, alongside support for phonics and early reading instruction.
Launched in the National Year of Reading, the guide draws on BookTrust’s latest National Family Survey of 3,508 parents and carers, alongside wider research and practical ideas. It finds that while most young children enjoy reading, there is a marked fall in enjoyment around the point they start school. This trend of declining enjoyment then continues across primary school
BookTrust says the findings highlight an important opportunity for schools, early years settings and families to work together so children continue to see books and stories as enjoyable, comforting and meaningful, as well as part of learning to read.
The new guide shows that starting school can change what reading feels like for children and families. As children enter Reception, reading at home can start to shift from playful to more instructional, while families also face new routines, tiredness, and competition from homework, clubs and screens. Daily shared reading falls from 55% at age four to 47% at age five.
BookTrust says the transition into primary school should be treated as a key moment to help families protect reading for enjoyment, not as an alternative to phonics or early reading instruction, but as a vital complement to it.
The findings underline the importance of shared reading, when children and adults enjoy books, stories and rhymes together. These experiences help children build language, confidence and connection. Shared reading is also shown to improve wellbeing and can even overcome social inequalities.
BookTrust’s research suggests many families want support for reading. Nearly two-thirds of parents and carers of five-year-olds say they would like more information and help to support their child to spend more time with books and stories, while 37% say they feel unclear about how to help their child enjoy reading.
BookTrust says this support matters, 92% of parents and carers of children aged five believe they play a vital role in developing their child’s reading ability. But differences in time, confidence, familiarity and access to books and support shape how easy it is for them to sustain children’s reading enjoyment at home. At age five, 42% of children in low-income households are read with daily, compared with 50% of children in non-low-income households, underlining the importance of practical, inclusive support from early years settings and schools.
BookTrust says that as families arrive at the school gates, there is a critical moment to narrow gaps and build a strong foundation for children’s lifelong love of reading.
The guide includes practical tips and resources, including three key ways schools and early years settings can support children and families: embedding reading and sharing stories within the school preparation journey; offering reassuring, practical guidance to parents and carers; and keeping reading for enjoyment visible alongside phonics and reading practice.
Diana Gerald, Co-CEO of BookTrust, said: