New HarperCollins study finds that daily reading for pleasure among five- to 17-year-olds fell from 39% in 2012 to 25% in 2025
The “relentless” focus on measuring literacy progress in schools has “pushed reading for pleasure to the margins”, according to a new report.
“Parents and schools both recognise that reading for pleasure matters, but their understandable focus on literacy skills is actively undermining it,” found the study, which analysed survey data on reading trends among UK children, drawing on data from HarperCollins, NielsenIQ and The Reading Agency.
Daily reading for pleasure among five to 17-year-olds fell from 39% in 2012 to 25% in 2025, data shows, while the proportion of children who rarely or never read for pleasure tripled from 5% to 15%.
However, the study also found that both daily and weekly reading for pleasure increased between 2024 and 2025 among 11- to 17-year-old boys and girls. For 14- to 17-year-old boys, who researchers claim are the “among the hardest-to-reach” in terms of encouraging reading, those who never read fell from 36% to 30% year-on-year.
