Most people would agree that reading is an essential skill. If you can’t read, it’s hard to learn, to find out information, to know where you are, to get access to services or benefits, to keep on top of your finances, and even to communicate with friends and family. People need to be able to read just to do the everyday things that most of us take for granted.

But there’s more to it than that.

If you want to improve a child’s chances in life, to help them learn better, be more confident, get a better job and earn more as an adult, helping them to enjoy reading is one of the best things you can do. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you come from; reading for pleasure has more impact on your life chances than your financial situation or where you live.

If you enjoy something like football, you want to do it all the time. And if you do it all the time, you probably get better at it. The same is true for reading. But if you are literate and enjoy reading, you don’t just get better at the technical skill of understanding words, you gain empathy, confidence and communication skills. You’re likely to have better mental health, you’re more likely to have a good job, you’re more likely to trust your neighbours and perceive your community as safe, and you’re more likely to be happy.

We want everyone to benefit from the pleasure that reading, alone and together, can bring, and from the positive impact it can have on individuals and the community in Hackney.

Words Unite. Let’s Get Hackney Reading.