The Teenage Reading Network was established in 2023. This network comprises psychology and English academics and a range of non-academics and provides capacity for working across the education community and with young people in all stages of the research process.
The aim of the Teenage Reading Network was to identify priorities for research, practice and policy regarding teenage reading. This first began in 2023 when we administered a survey to stakeholders to identify these priorities. We then hosted an event in 2023 (which you can read more about below) to discuss the findings of this survey. A report was then published summarising this process and the priorities that were identified. Since then, we have hosted another Teenage Reading Network meeting in 2026 to catch up on all the exciting updates that have occurred since our first meeting.
Event 2026
The infographic above very nicely summarises our event that took place on May 22nd 2026 in Central London. Attendees from across academia, secondary schools, charities, publishers, government and more gathered to catch up on all the exciting updates that have happened since our first meeting back in 2023.
You can find out more about our 2026 event here.
Event 2023
Teenage Reading Network Report
Summary of Teenage Reading Network
Teenage Reading Network poster
Following on from this, one of the priorities that were identified by this network is the need to include teenagers and find out from them directly why aren’t they reading and how can we get them to read more. Courtney Hooton was awarded a PhD Public Engagement Bursary from the Social Science Impact Accelerator to do just that. Click here to find out more about this project.