Is Reading for Pleasure Being Squeezed Out of Our Schools, and What Can Teachers Do About It?

Reading for pleasure in schools has long been championed as one of the most powerful predictors of a child's long-term success. Research consistently places it above socioeconomic background and even parental education level as a driver of cognitive development. So why are children reading less for enjoyment than ever before?

It's a question that has landed firmly in front of the government's Education Committee, and the answers make for important reading (no pun intended).

What the Experts Are Saying

In May 2026 the Education Committee heard evidence that England's secondary English curriculum has been actively working against reading for pleasure. According to Robert Eaglestone of the English Association, a "teach for the test" approach and a narrowing of prescribed texts have left little room for the kind of wide, joyful, personally meaningful reading that builds lifelong readers.

The current Key Stage 4 English literature curriculum requires Shakespeare, a 19th-century novel, and fiction from "the British Isles from 1914 onwards" - a framework critics argue limits diversity and squeezes out global voices. The result? Personal response to texts has "taken a back seat", replaced by analysis in service of exam performance.

The Primary Picture

It's not just secondary schools feeling the pressure. Early years experts told the same committee that an intense focus on phonics, while important as a foundation skill, can sometimes be delivered in ways that feel disconnected from the actual joy of stories. As one Cambridge researcher put it, the goal must be "instilling a joy of books," not just decoding them.

Roger McDonald of the University of Greenwich described how reading time gets "moved out" by accountability pressures and the performance nature of testing. Meanwhile, Victoria Dilly of the School Libraries Association highlighted that school libraries, consistently the best investment a school can make for reading culture, are often the first casualty of cost-cutting, with no statutory requirement to protect them.

What This Means for Teachers and Support Staff

If you are an English teacher, TA, librarian or literacy lead, you already know this tension intimately. You see it in the child who buries themselves in a book at breaktime but freezes in front of an exam question. You see it in the reading corner that never quite gets used because there isn't the time.

The good news is that the conversation is moving. The government has pledged over £10 million to ensure every primary school has a library. The Curriculum and Assessment Review has acknowledged the need for greater diversity and breadth of texts. And the Education Committee's inquiry signals that this issue now has genuine political attention.

What Can You Do To Encourage Reading For Pleasure in Schools?

Small things make a difference. Protecting even ten minutes of independent reading, letting pupils choose their own books sometimes or celebrating reading that has nothing to do with assessments, are all ideas that matter enormously when the system is pulling in the opposite direction.

At Gold Education Recruitment, we work with educators across Essex, Hertfordshire and Suffolk who bring this kind of care and thoughtfulness to their classrooms every day. If you are a teacher, TA or literacy specialist looking for a role in a school that genuinely values reading culture and pupil wellbeing, we would love to help you find it. You can head to our Jobs Board to browse our latest vacancies, or contact our team to find out more about becoming a candidate.