On Thursday 1 October, business leaders and Chapter One corporate partners gathered in London for the launch of Chapter One's national poll. The event was generously hosted by our Platinum Partner Amentum.

The poll was carried out by Censuswide in August 2026. It asked 500 primary school teachers, 1,000 parents of children aged 5–11 and 2,000 UK adults about children's reading. It also explored the difference a trusted adult can make and the role workplace volunteering can play in supporting young readers.

Luke Richardson, Head of Social Value at Amentum opened the evening with a welcome, and Chapter One CEO Emma Bell then presented the findings.

Family reading time is under pressure

The findings showed that parents want to read with their children, but time is getting in the way. Nearly two thirds (64%) of UK parents spend less than an hour reading with their child in a typical week. That puts most families below the 70 minutes recommended for a child's development. Yet 86% said they would like more time to read with their child.

The difference a trusted adult makes

The poll also explored what holds children back as readers. Teachers identified fear of making mistakes in front of others (53%) as a barrier to confidence. Limited opportunities to practise reading one-to-one with an adult (44%) was another.

Teachers and parents agreed on the value of another trusted adult in a child's reading life. 96% of teachers said it is valuable for children to have a consistent adult outside their family and school circle who takes an interest in their progress. 87% of parents and 91% of teachers agreed that reading regularly with a trusted adult or volunteer would help improve a child's confidence.

An opportunity for business

For the business leaders in the room, the findings pointed to an appetite for action among employees. 79% of working adults agree that a trusted adult outside the family or school circle can have a lasting impact on a child's future. Two thirds (67%) would like to volunteer their time reading with children if they had their employer's support. 69% believe businesses should support employees to do so. Asked what would make them more likely to volunteer, 45% said seeing the impact on a child and 36% said flexible scheduling around their job.

Teachers and parents also see benefits beyond reading. 85% of teachers and 84% of parents agreed that reading volunteers can help broaden children's understanding of the world of work.

The view from a Platinum Partner

Ikramul Choudhury, Senior Manager - Responsible Business at our Platinum Partner Eversheds Sutherland, shared the firm's experience as a Chapter One partner. When the partnership launched in 2024, far more colleagues came forward to volunteer than the firm had expected. It was also the first corporate supporter of Chapter One's Early Literacy Intervention programme.

Ikramul shared that the flexibility of reading online for 30 minutes a week lets busy professionals take part consistently. He described one volunteer whose weekly sessions helped a Year 1 pupil grow in confidence and enjoyment of reading. The volunteer felt he gained as much from it as she did. Ikramul's message to the room was clear: there is space for many more businesses to get involved.

A keynote from the National Year of Reading

In his keynote, David Hayman, director of the National Year of Reading 2026 - described a long decline in children's reading enjoyment, which he said has fallen by 20% over the past two decades. He noted that when the campaign asked young people and parents what they most associated with reading, many said homework.

He said Chapter One's national poll findings showed how much perceptions matter in building a new reading culture. He highlighted the 53% of primary teachers who say fear of making mistakes in front of others is a barrier to children's reading. He noted that parents face pressures too, even though, as the poll shows, they want to read with their children.

"Somewhere in the past two decades, reading had gone from a pastime to be enjoyed to a chore to be endured," he said.

He called for less pressure on getting reading right and more focus on the joy it can bring, which he hoped would be at the heart of the volunteer experience too. He also thanked Chapter One and the businesses in the room for the volunteers supporting the National Year of Reading's campaign goal of recruiting 100,000 reading volunteers. David shared early signs of progress, including the first rise in children's reading for pleasure in five years. He set out the ambition to build on 2026 with a National Decade of Reading.

The view from the classroom

Carol Wallis, Headteacher of Roselands Infants' School in East Sussex, closed the evening.

Carol began with the story of one of her pupils. The girl was nervous and hesitant in her first Chapter One sessions. A few months later, she was bursting into Carol's office on session day asking, "Is it my turn yet? Is my reader waiting for me?"

Carol said the poll findings reflect what she sees every day. Children go quiet when asked to read aloud, teachers don't have the hours for one-to-one practice, and families are stretched by work and financial pressures. "A volunteer fills a gap that nobody is at fault for," she said.

She described the online sessions as a safe space where children can stumble over a word and try again without fear of judgement. She said the programme has played a direct role in the school's phonics screening check and reading results. Her message to the businesses in the room was that most of the people there could be that trusted adult for a child.

With thanks to our supporting partners

The poll was made possible with support from five of Chapter One's corporate partners: KPMG, Amentum, Ashurst Perkins Coie, Eversheds Sutherland and the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation. Special thanks to Amentum for hosting the launch.

Thirty minutes a week. One child. One trusted volunteer.

If you'd like to find out how your employees could make a lasting difference by reading with a child online, contact karen.price@chapterone.org