To ask the Minister of Education to detail any steps being taken to ensure the National Year of Reading leaves a long term legacy beyond 2026.

Evidence shows that reading, writing and oracy are fundamental to children’s learning and long-term outcomes. Strong Foundations, my Department’s Literacy Framework, places these core skills at the centre of efforts to raise standards for all learners and promotes reading for pleasure as part of a strong whole-school literacy culture.

The Department is supporting the National Literacy Trust’s work during the National Year of Reading to strengthen reading culture and improve access to books across Northern Ireland. I spoke at the launch of the National Year of Reading and at the opening of a school library funded by the Trust. My officials have also engaged with the Department for Education in England on a pilot linked to the campaign. In addition, the Department regularly shares the Trust’s communications and resources with schools and has recorded a webinar for the DE website on reading for pleasure, delivered by the Trust’s Northern Ireland representative. Together, these actions are helping to champion the National Year of Reading by widening access to books, promoting reading for pleasure and supporting a stronger reading culture in schools.

By embedding this work within wider, long-term literacy improvement, the Department is helping to ensure that the impact of the National Year of Reading extends beyond 2026 and leaves a sustained legacy of stronger literacy and greater enjoyment of reading.