There’s a new “Couch To 5K” campaign in town! This time it’s being run by the UK national charity, The Reading Agency. The idea is to encourage new and lapsed readers to pledge to read at least 30 minutes a week for 10 weeks – and for them to discover what a difference reading can make to your life.
So what are the benefits of reading? Well …. Reading can help boost self esteem, can support mental health, can spark curiosity, can help make you feel socially included, can help to give better awareness of other cultures, and can help broaden general knowledge.
The official “Kick Off” is during Reading Hour (7 – 8pm) on World Book Night – Sunday 23 April 2023. However, you are able to sign up from today (details below). Over the 10 weeks, The Reading Agency will be sharing weekly tips, useful advice, reading recommendations and lots more. Regular readers are not left out – if you sign up you would also be able to log your reads and give valuable insights by adding to a survey for a national study into reading and life satisfaction.
As luck would have it, I have read a brilliant cross section of books recently and have interviewed the authors, so this Spring you can enjoy my reading recommendations starting next week with author J L Lycette and her book, “The Algorithm Will See You Now” .
Happy Reading! 😊
Linda x
About The Reading Agency
The Reading Agency is a national charity that tackles life’s big challenges through the proven power of reading. They work closely with partners to develop and deliver programmes for people of all ages and backgrounds; their vision is for a world where everyone is reading their way to a better life. They help 1.9 million people benefit from reading every year, through their programmes, their tireless campaigning, their excellent networks, and their power to influence, challenge and make change happen. www.readingagency.org.uk
About World Book Night
World Book Night brings people from all backgrounds together for one reason –to inspire others to read more. In 2022, World Book Night gifted books to organisations across the UK and Ireland, reaching 15 million people digitally. Organisations and individuals hold events up and down the country to celebrate the difference that reading makes to our lives, from book themed parties at home to books swaps in offices. Organisations can volunteer to hand out books from our annual list to people who don’t read for pleasure or own books.
About Quick Reads
Quick Reads, a programme by The Reading Agency, aims to bring the pleasures and benefits of reading to everyone, including the one in three adults in the UK who do not regularly read for pleasure, and the one in six adults in the UK who find reading difficult. The scheme changes lives and plays a vital role in addressing the national crisis around adult literacy in the UK.
Each year, Quick Reads works with a range of publishers to commission high profile authors to write short, engaging books that are specifically designed to be easy to read. In 2023 The Reading Agency are launching a set of most popular Quick Reads to celebrate 16 years of Quick Reads.
The titles are available for just £1 and since 2006, over 6 million books have been distributed through the initiative, 5 million library loans (PLR) have been registered and through outreach work hundreds of thousands of new readers each year have been introduced to the joys and benefits of reading. From 2020 – 2022, the initiative is supported by a philanthropic gift from bestselling author Jojo Moyes.
About Arts Council England
Arts Council England is the national development agency for creativity and culture. We have set out our strategic vision in Let’s Create that by 2030 we want England to be a country in which the creativity of each of us is valued and given the chance to flourish and where everyone of us has access to a remarkable range of high-quality cultural experiences. We invest public money from Government and The National Lottery to help support the sector and to deliver this vision. www.artscouncil.org.uk
Following the Covid-19 crisis, the Arts Council developed a £160 million Emergency Response Package, with nearly 90% coming from the National Lottery, for organisations and individuals needing support. We are also one of the bodies administering the Government’s unprecedented £1.96 billion Culture Recovery Funds. Find out more at www.artscouncil.org.uk/covid19
For Pinning Later:
Apart from the Pinterest & header photo, the other photos have been published with kind permission of The Reading Agency.
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