The nation is 'going all in' for the National Year of Reading 2026 - and our 2024-25 Impact Report, published today, shows exactly why this matters.

Reading expands worlds, sharpens minds, supports wellbeing and fuels creativity. It is fundamental to the life chances and confidence of young people. Yet today, just one in three children and young people aged 8 to 18 say they enjoy reading - the lowest level in 20 years.

In 2024-25, Chapter One supported 3,388 children across three programmes - Online Reading Volunteers, Early Literacy Intervention and Book Clubs - helping them build both the will and the skill to read. None of this would have been possible without our 2,957 volunteers from 149 corporate partners, who gave the equivalent of 2.8 years' worth of reading support in a single academic year.

For the first time, we are publishing evaluation results from all three programmes. The impact is clear. In our Online Reading Volunteers Programme, 88% of children increased by at least one reading level, and 91% of children made improvements in their reading knowledge and functional skills. In our Early Literacy Intervention, 95% of children passed their national Phonics Screening Check. And in our Book Club pilot (evaluated by the Open University's Reading for Pleasure Unit), just 10 weeks was enough to produce a 19% increase in children's enjoyment of reading - with children who had previously avoided books actively choosing to pick them up and a 27% increase in children viewing themselves as good readers.

The report also gives detail on how we developed a new partnership with Impact Advantage to create a detailed model measuring the social impact our partners deliver - calculating a a £2,782 of social value per child in 2024-25.

When businesses, schools and volunteers unite around literacy, we create lasting change. Our 2024-25 Impact Report shows what is possible when we 'go all in' together.

We believe that with the right support, at the right time, every child can have the opportunity to thrive. That’s why we’re always on the lookout for new corporate partners and funders to help expand our reach and impact.

If your organisation can help, do get in touch with Sarah Taylor, our Business Development Manager, at sarah.taylor@chapterone.org

If you're a school which is keen to know more about our work, please get in touch with Kathryn Taylor, our Schools Development Manager, at kathryn.taylor@chapterone.org.