Hachette UK’s Changing the Story Reading Programme with the National Literacy Trust boosts pupils’ reading skills, enjoyment and confidence

14 November 2024,

An analysis of an innovative schools reading programme, published today, has boosted both reading skills and reading enjoyment and confidence among the children who participated.

Cumulative results from the three years of Hachette UK’s Changing the Story Reading Programme with the National Literacy Trust, show that the scheme consistently improved pupils’ reading ability, with the percentage of participating pupils reading below the national average decreasing from 50.7% before taking part to 27% after taking part, and the percentage reading above the national average increasing six-fold (1.4% to 8.8%).

The percentage of pupils who rated themselves as ‘very good’ readers almost doubled (20.6% to 38.3%), 43.3% of children experienced an increase in their own reading enjoyment, and almost all teachers (92.5%) observed that children showed greater resilience in their reading*.

Hachette UK and the National Literacy Trust’s Changing the Story Reading Programme was created to tackle low levels of literacy and reading enjoyment among primary school children in the UK, particularly for those eligible for free school meals. The data collected from both pupils and teachers indicates significant improvements in pupils’ reading ability and attitudes to reading:

• 85.5% of teachers said children’s attitude towards reading improved, and that they enjoyed reading more.
• The percentage of children who said they enjoyed reading ‘very much’ increased by 53%.
• The percentage of children who said they didn’t enjoy reading at all decreased from 10.6% to 0.7%.
• 98% of teachers agreed that the books provided had a range of illustrations depicting different cultures and ethnicities.
• Data from teachers also suggests that the programme and its resources benefitted the schools more broadly, with 70.4% of teachers saying that their schools had put more emphasis on developing higher-order reading skills as a result of the programme.

Launched in 2021, as part of its three-year partnership with the National Literacy Trust, Hachette UK’s Changing the Story Reading Programme has supported young people from 38 primary schools across England where high numbers of children experience socioeconomic disadvantage**. The programme was designed around reading sessions using Hodder Education’s (soon to be Hachette Learning) Reading Planet scheme, which celebrates diversity and champions individuality through stories, characters and themes that reflect the world we live in today. 

Over 26,000 Reading Planet and Hachette Children’s Group books were donated to the participating schools along with free access to Reading Planet Online, and to resources and teacher training co-delivered by the National Literacy Trust and Hodder Education (soon to be Hachette Learning)staff.

Martin Galway, Head of School Programmes at the National Literacy Trust, said: “We have been delighted to work with Hodder Education on the Changing the Story programme across the past three years.  Through high-quality training, a well-rounded approach to reading sessions and the use of their top-tier systematic phonics programme materials, we have seen consistent improvements in both reading skills and attitudes, and greater levels of reading engagement.  As such, the programme’s design has helped to ensure a strong start in reading for many children who found the early reading journey especially challenging.”

Seshni Jacobs, CEO at Hodder Education (soon to be Hachette Learning), said: This report affirms the transformative impact that Reading Planet is having on children’s reading skills and confidence. In just three years, we have seen remarkable progress, and these achievements speak directly to our mission of unlocking every learner’s unique potential through accessible and impactful teaching and learning solutions. Our goal is to ensure every child feels confident and excited to grow as a reader.”

The report analyses the data collected from Hodder Education’s (soon to be Hachette Learning) Progress in Reading Assessment (PiRA) tests which reliably benchmark performance and track progress against national averages in reading. The report combines this statistically robust data with results from pre- and post-attitudinal surveys of pupils, and a post-programme survey of teachers.

The full evaluation report of the programme can be found here.