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Reading Champions

NRCQ Final

Introducing Reading Champions

Reading Champions is a national reading campaign that supports and celebrates reading culture within schools. The programme is fortunate to benefit from the generous and enthusiastic support of the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS).

What is the Reading Champions programme?

There are two distinct elements to the Reading Champions programme, offering something for all students:

  • A national, live quiz, with heats in the spring term and a summer grand final
  • Termly in-school reading challenges, each inspired by engaging themes

Reading Champions has three core aims:

  • to promote reading enjoyment
  • to encourage diverse reading
  • to improve reading stamina

National Reading Champions Quiz

The National Reading Champions Quiz, with the support of the Authors’ Licensing Collecting Society (ALCS), returns for its fifth year in 2025.

The quiz is hugely popular and has created lots of memorable moments for young readers across the UK. But don't just take our word for it...read these insights from a team that made it to the finals previously:

Please find out more about taking part in the National Reading Champions Quiz

“My favourite part of the quiz was seeing kids get all excited because they knew the answer … Those moments give all students a chance to shine and to feel like they are clever and important which is so important for their confidence and self-esteem. If only you could bottle that enthusiasm!”

Regional Organiser, West Midlands

Reading Champions ALCS logo

Reading Champions Challenges

As part of our ongoing work to support schools, we run Reading Champions Challenges. These bitesized challenges are designed to help build a reading culture in schools by encouraging reading for pleasure, reading diversely, and supporting development of reading stamina. Reading Champions Challenges are open to and completely free for all UK schools, and span across ages 5 to 14 (Key Stages 1, 2, and 3, P2 to S3).

  • Fun termly challenges

    One or two challenges every term, each with its own engaging theme and activities. Supported by a suite of resources that will include teacher guidance notes along with additional elements such as posters, templates, and video clips.

  • Simple and adaptable

    Clear guidance notes help you run the challenge and adapt it to suit your own circumstances, whatever the age of your students, size of the group, or time you have available. Keep activity focused, or scale up the challenge across the whole school!

  • Book giveaways and prizes

    Our challenges often come with fantastic book prizes, book discounts and book giveaways. Books are always carefully selected to help support delivery or recognise a great winning entry.

See all our Reading Champions Challenges

Get in touch

If you have any questions about Reading Champions, please email us at nrcq@literacytrust.org.uk.

About our partner

National Literacy Trust Reading Champions is supported by ALCS.

Explore useful teaching resources developed by ALCS to support understanding and communication about copyright with guides for children, young people and teachers.

Watch this ALCS animation as a great starting point to helping your students understand copyright in a fun and interactive way. Karl Nova uses his voice and talent to bring the importance of copyright for writers and artists to life in this video from ALCS.

Learn more about ALCS