Research reports

An evaluation of the first year of NewsWise – a free, cross-curricular news literacy programme for 9- to 11-year-olds across the UK.

This report uses data from our 2019 Annual Literacy Survey and the Great School Library Campaign to determine how many schools in the UK have had a writer visit in the last year,...

This report outlines findings from our eighth Annual Literacy Survey relating to children and young people’s reading in 2017/18.

Using data from our 2019 Annual Literacy Survey of 56,905 children and young people aged 9 to 18 in the UK, this report suggests that offering children and young people the...

Based on a survey of 219 UK teachers, this report indicates that the majority of teachers believe that technology can have a positive impact on children’s literacy learning.

This report brings together three broad areas of education – reading, financial capability and general academic motivation – to understand how they are related.

In this report, we discuss school libraries from the point of view of children and young people. We explore how many children use school libraries, why they do or do not use them,...

We surveyed 44,097 children aged 8-18 to look into the link between book ownership, literacy engagement and mental wellbeing.

To celebrate Blue Peter's 60th birthday, we explored children and young people’s letter writing in 2017/18. We looked at how many children and young people write letters in...

To support National Poetry Day on 4 October 2018, we were commissioned to conduct the first ever national survey of children and young people’s views on poetry in England.

This report explores the link between children and young people’s mental wellbeing and their reading and writing enjoyment, attitudes and behaviours.

The NewsWise programme was developed as a collaborative partnership between Google, The Guardian Foundation, the National Literacy Trust and the PSHE Association. This report covers...

This report evaluates the impact of Mrs Wordsmith, an illustrated, data-driven vocabulary programme for children aged 6-13.

The 2017 evaluation of our Books Unlocked programme, which promotes reading for pleasure in prisons, supported by the Man Booker Prize Foundation.

The survey looked at the reading habits of over 4,000 primary school children in 2018

Our evaluation of Early Words Together at Two explores the outcomes of the programme on children, parents, and practitioners. 

This report compares pupils who participated in Readathon with those who haven't and shows that Readathon is related to various improved reading outcomes. 

The final report of the Commission on Fake News and the Teaching of Critical Literacy in Schools.

This report explores how many children and young people enjoy writing, how often they write in their free time, what they think about writing and more.

This report explores the writing enjoyment, behaviours and attitudes of 8 to 11-year-olds in the UK in the 2017/18 academic year. 

An evidence review exploring the link between literacy and life expectancy in England through health and socioeconomic factors.