Quick Reads Reading Breaks kick-started Tuesday, February 7, 2012 - 11:41

NIACE is calling on workplaces, colleges and local community organisations across the country to hold Reading Breaks to encourage new and reluctant readers to develop a love of reading following the publication of 8 new Quick Reads in February. The new Quick Reads authors for 2012 include Maeve Binchy, Alexander McCall Smith, James Caan and Tony Parsons and Chapter Samplers of the brand new titles are now available from BBC Skillswise, to listen to online or to download as PDF and Word documents.

Reading Breaks have kick-started across the country today and NIACE is encouraging even more organisations to hold activity through to World Book Day on Thursday 1 March 2012 and beyond. This coincides with February's Fall in Love with Reading campaign, co-ordinated by Freud communications.

Because parents who are confident readers have such a positive impact on their children's literacy levels, NIACE is also working in partnership with World Book Day to encourage schools and other family learning organisations to hold Family Reading Breaks as part of their World Book Day activities, on Thursday 1 March 2012 when new books for children will be published.

On World Book Day 2011 hundreds of schools held Family Reading Breaks where parents and carers joined their children in finding out more about books and how they could help each other explore and enjoy the world of reading together. NIACE is hoping that even more schools and workplaces will get involved to help reluctant readers discover a passion for books in 2012.

To help make these Reading Breaks a success, free downloadable Reading Break and Family Reading Break toolkits are available. Comprehensive packs for schools and workplaces, complete with discounted copies of the new titles (and a display stand for workplaces only), can be ordered online. The packs for schools will also include a selection of children's books. A range of other learning resources to support the use of previous Quick Reads titles in literacy lessons are also available from The Reading Agency.

Businesses and individuals who have used Quick Reads books have experienced their benefits firsthand:

"In the Metro (Wimbledon) area alone, at the start of my ULR duties I set up a book-swap shelf in the mess room. This proved to be popular amongst the staff, so I developed a Learning Awareness noticeboard, which also proved a success. This in turn led to interest in other learning opportunities. At present I have 25 staff enrolled on NVQs, correspondence courses, online learning and Skills for Life courses." - South West Trains

"The Quick Reads books have attracted staff into the learning centre which has lead to them carrying out further courses. I think most people like books even those who have difficulty in reading so they automatically catch people's attention which leads to a conversation about learning." - Avana bakeries

City Parks Literacy Group - A group of gardeners with Brighton & Hove City Council's Parks and Gardens Department have used Quick Reads to brush up on their literacy skills to help their families and fellow workers, and are now learning ambassadors to the wider community. 

Emma Cliffe, Project Manager of Quick Reads at NIACE, said:

"In 2011 hundreds of schools helped children and parents enjoy books and reading activities together, and we are inviting all organisations - schools and other children's and family centres - across the country to get involved for 2012. Research, including NIACE's recent literacy inquiry, shows that parents' reading habits are the single most important factor in children's literacy and reading and the Family Reading Break provides a great opportunity for teachers to talk to mums, dads and carers about their reading and how they can help their children. These breaks will build on current family learning initiatives that schools may be running."

"Businesses, too, have identified that literacy initiatives in the workplace improve productivity, attendance and morale, and help workers feel more confident in their jobs and more positive about their future careers. Quick Reads have been an integral part of helping many thousands of people to read, complete and enjoy a book for the first time in their lives - something they thought would never happen. They then go on to read more and more and pass on their love of reading to their friends and family."