Hundreds of Peterborough children pick up a book as part of National Literacy Trust campaign

Scores of people across Peterborough picked up a book as part of a National Literacy Trust campaign to encourage people to read.

At 10am on Tuesday, people across Peterborough took part in the #Take10ToRead challenge for World Mental Health Day. The campaign promotes the wellbeing benefits of reading for pleasure, encouraging everyone to give it a try for ten minutes.

Nearly 500 children from local schools tuned into digital storytelling events with authors and illustrators to celebrate words and the way they make us feel.

Becky Marrs, National Literacy Trust Manager in Peterborough, said: “It’s fantastic to see that 500 children in Peterborough joined our incredible authors and illustrators, Ziggy Hanaor, Ollie Silvester, Susie Dent and Aoife Dooley to complete the #Take10ToRead challenge on World Mental Health Day.

“Family life is busy and there is so much to fit into a day, but finding some time to read together is a great way to build special memories and help parents and young children relax and discover the wonder of words. Try it for 10 minutes today and see where it takes you.”

Alongside the three online events, the National Literacy Trust in Peterborough hosted a community event to encourage local families to take 10 minutes out of their day to read.

In collaboration with Peterborough Libraries and Peterborough Museum, the event on Friday 5 October invited pre-schools and families with early years children to join in storytelling, singing and crafting. Around 70 people attended, taking away books to read together at home or nursery.