Supporting Health Professionals
Tools and Resources to use reading and stories to support the health and development of young children
Helping to share stories from the earliest age
We support health teams ranging from health visitors to neonatal units to bring the benefits of sharing books and stories to babies and children. Our Bookstart packs are designed to help families get started with reading and can be used by our health partners within their existing service provision.
Resources for practitioners
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Welcome to the dedicated space for Bookstart Toddler and Pre-Schooler/Nursery, an early years programme designed to support families to get started with reading.
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Free tips and advice in 25 languages on sharing books with babies.
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Our latest research briefing outlines why reading is important for children experiencing vulnerability and the learning that underpins how BookTrust is encouraging reading habits.
The Gifting Guide
Download our handy one page gifting guide to help you share the magic of reading in your role
Download the GuideStarting shared reading early
Find out what our research with families in the UK tells us about the importance of shared reading in the early years. As well as how our Bookstart Baby programmes can support this.
66% of children who had their first reading experience in the first year were still being read to daily at age 5 to 7, compared with 49% of those who were first read to at 12 months or older
I wouldn’t have started reading with my older children until they were about two years old. The Bookstart Baby pack did make me think maybe I’m leaving it a bit late. And I did try it earlier when my daughter was three months old, and it did work, because now at two, she absolutely loves her books and is speaking so well.
Parent, South East England
Programmes and offers
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Every child in England, Wales and Northern Ireland aged 0 to 12 months is eligible for our free book pack, designed to help families to read and share stories with their child from as early as possible.
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BookTrust is dedicated to encouraging families of all cultures to engage with books. We want to ensure that every child has access to books and the opportunity to enjoy reading.
Engaging families
I found the practitioner really helped me because she delivers everything bilingually and she’s very good at being inclusive and bringing everybody in. Using ‘baby’ language helped me feel more confident to join in. She was also doing actions, so it helps me copy those actions when I read with my grandchildren.
Grandparent, Central Wales
Book recommendations
We are always reviewing the latest books. Find new stories children will love, by using our interactive Bookfinder tool to search by age and topic, or check out some of the booklists put together by our books team.
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Books to support developmental milestones
Celebrating all the clever things young children can learn to do – from clapping and waving, to saying their first words