VISION
More children, from all backgrounds, developing a life-long habit of reading for pleasure, benefiting from the improved life chances this brings them.

MISSION
To promote reading for pleasure, offering every child and young person the opportunity to have a book of their own.

What World Book Day achieved in 2021:

• Over 2 million books were printed in 2021 giving children and young people 12 exciting books to choose from and own,
• 54k books donated by publishers were distributed via the National Literacy Trust to children least likely to have books along with 24k books to prison communities, 2.4k through Read for Good and 2.4k through libraries,
• 1 in 5 children receiving free school meals said the book they ‘bought’ with their WBD book token was the first book they had of their own,
• Engaged 133k children and young people online with our Share a Story Live digital events programme,
• We made an impact: 65% of early years settings and 70% primary schools said World Book Day is effective in fostering a reading for pleasure culture.

Research found that 96.9% of children have heard of World Book Day and children who participate in World Book Day activities are more engaged in reading and books than those who don’t.

Read more about the difference World Book Day makes in Our Impact 2021.

NB Some of our figures (for example £1 Token redemptions) are incomplete due to the COVID-19 lockdown.

Exploring the impact of World Book Day on the reading lives of children in the UK 2019-2021

We commissioned The National Literacy Trust  to evaluate the impact of our work on the reading lives of children aged 8 to 11 in the UK.

This report covers research conducted between 2019 and 2021, which aimed to capture children’s perceptions of how the event supports their reading opportunities and influences their developing reading identities. Their work demonstrated that World Book Day welcomes children into the world of books and reading in two ways: by helping all children become book owners, many for the first time, and by supporting a variety of activities and experiences essential for building life-long readers. Read the full report here.