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Bookstart Baby

Welcome to the dedicated space for Bookstart Baby, a universally gifted early years programme designed to help families to read and share stories with their child from as early as possible.

About Bookstart Baby

Families with babies up to 12 months in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are eligible for a free Bookstart Baby pack, with a bilingual pack offered in Wales. These packs are a great way to support early development and are provided through health visitors, libraries, registrars and many other partners working in the early years.

If you are interested in delivering Bookstart Baby in your setting, email [email protected] to find out who your local Bookstart Coordinator is. 

In each local authority in England, Bookstart Baby is administered and coordinated by a Bookstart Coordinator who works with local partners to allocate the resources to the best effect. 

In Northern Ireland, Bookstart Baby is delivered during regular Health Visitor checks. Please contact your local Health Visitor for further information. 

Inside the packs

Bookstart Baby pack in England, Northern Ireland and Wales

The Bookstart Baby pack includes a book, finger puppet, tips for sharing stories with babies and in addition in NI and Wales a library leaflet. The book title may vary. For a peek inside the pack and to find out more about how and why we chose to include each resource please watch the following videos.

Unboxing Bookstart Baby in England and Northern Ireland

Unboxing Bookstart Baby in Wales

Unboxing Bookstart Baby in Wales (Welsh language video)

In England only, additional books are available in other languages for English as an additional language (EAL) families and parental guidance is also available to download and print in 20 languages. 

See our guide for parents on how to read with your baby.

Benefits of Bookstart Baby

We know that shared reading in the early years can lead to amazing benefits for families and children, and Bookstart Baby can provide the opportunities for this to happen.

When we surveyed families who had received Bookstart Baby, they said that the pack:

  • Helped them to learn something new about ways they can read or share books and stories with their child (74%)
  • Made them feel more confident about reading with their child (68%)
  • Prompted them to read and share stories more with their child (78%)
  • Prompted them to set up a reading routine at home with their child (68%)

Source: Percentage of 623 families strongly agreeing or agreeing with the above statements, Bookstart Baby Family Survey 2024–25

  • Building bonds through sharing books

    • Research

    Relationships are the basis of children’s learning and development. Moments of emotional closeness with a parent or caregiver strengthen children’s emotional and social development, helping them to build healthy relationships. Reliable, consistent and responsive caregiving supports a strong bond between a child and their caregiver, building a child’s confidence, independence and resilience. Shared reading provides the perfect opportunity for these bonding moments. 

If you’re a parent or carer

If you are a parent or carer who would like more advice and support, you can check out our guide to reading with your child aged 0–12 months.

Or head to our Bookstart Baby for parents and carers page. 

Bookstart Baby: your questions answered

Bookstart Baby packs are for all families with babies aged 0–12 months. The programme is universal and available to every family in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Packs can be gifted anytime before a child’s first birthday. However, our research shows that the resources are most effective when gifted within the first six months of a baby’s life. This early window supports bonding and attachment and helps families start sharing books from the very beginning. 

Bookstart Baby aims to encourage families to start sharing books and stories early, build positive reading habits from birth, support bonding and attachment, and reduce inequalities by ensuring every family receives high-quality, free reading resources. 

Share the resources with families and model how to share books and have fun. Encourage parents/​carers to keep reading relaxed and pressure-free, share books little and often, be playful and interactive, and follow their baby’s lead. The focus is on shared enjoyment rather than reading every word. 

A range of additional resources are available on the BookTrust website including guidance on reading with babies aged 0–12 months, a family-facing webpage all about BookStart Baby, have fun at home activity ideas, and book suggestions for babies. 

Publishers allow Bookstart Baby books to be gifted free of charge, promoted locally by partners, and used in story sharing sessions, videos and social media, provided correct credits are given.

Bookstart Baby is BookTrust’s flagship universal early years programme and forms the first step in a joined-up reading journey for children aged 0–5 in England, Wales and Northen Ireland. 

The programme is evaluated through parent and carer surveys, longitudinal research and qualitative feedback. Evidence shows Bookstart Baby increases confidence and frequency of shared reading and encourages families to start reading earlier. 

If you have further questions or queries please email [email protected].