Champions For Children Big Give 2026

Comprehensive studies show that in the UK, the most disadvantaged pupils scored significantly lower in reading than the least disadvantaged pupils (PISA, 2022). The disadvantage gap has widened in recent years and is now considerably wider than in the five years prior to the pandemic (EPI, 2025). By the end of primary school, around 47% of disadvantaged children are not reading at the expected standard—22% less than their more advantaged peers (Department for Education, 24-25).

Reading for pleasure is a powerful driver of both educational attainment and wellbeing. Children who read regularly not only perform better academically, but also demonstrate stronger vocabulary, communication skills, and confidence (Department of Education, 2012).

Here’s where we come in – Doorstep Library runs free, at-home reading visits for 0–11-year-olds living in disadvantaged areas.

Our highly trained, compassionate volunteers are paired with a family. They visit the same children every week in term time. This way, we get to know the children, building an understanding of their unique skills and interests. We take pride in picking books that will genuinely spark excitement in the children we see, and aim to reflect their diverse experiences back to them.

Providing a reading service like ours might sound simple, but it requires a lot of love, care, and attention to deliver the best possible service to the children we see. Money we raise could help us deliver the training, safeguarding, and recruitment of Doorstep Library volunteers that we need to bring books to the 600 children we see every year.

We also need money to buy books! By purchasing the latest children’s titles where we can, we ensure that the children we see don’t feel left behind by their more affluent peers. This way, we keep them invested and interested in reading for the long run.