World Book Day

With World Book Day on Thursday 1 March and the government unveiling plans to boost literacy standards, it’s good news, because parents are enjoying reading with their children!
Computer Voucher Services (CVS) – the childcare voucher provider - questioned 1465 parents and 51 per cent are reading for an average of 25 minutes each day with a child. A literary 20 per cent are reading even more with a book-loving 42 minutes of reading time a day.
Toddlers are doing particularly well with their reading times with 63 per cent of two-year-olds being read with for over 25 minutes a day and a third of three-year-olds for over 42 minutes. 

However, in stark contrast one in ten parents spends less than nine minutes a day reading with their offspring, a figure which increases the more siblings a child has.
Julian Foster, managing director of CVS, said: ‘Busy parents face a number of time pressures and it's very positive to see that despite this, a majority are reading with their children regularly - with a quarter even managing over five hours a week!
‘This is great news, as research suggests that children who are read to on a regular basis before they start school are most likely to succeed, and it is thought to be a key predictor of educational success.’
Speaking earlier this month, School Minister Nick Gibb said that reading books for just half an hour a day could be worth up to 12 months' extra schooling by the age of 15.
Parents are the most important reading role models for children and young people, according to a report by The National Literacy Trust. Mums are taking the lead as 67 per cent of parents who read to their children are mothers, compared to just 17% of fathers.
Julian added: ‘To help parents motivate and inspire their children to read, CVS is launching a special 'Let's get Kids Reading' campaign on Thursday 1 March to coincide with World Book Day. Any parents wishing to get involved can visit our special online book club, on our dedicated Facebook page, where they'll find practical advice, reviews and competitions - including the chance to win their child's height in books!’
CVS is the largest dedicated childcare voucher provider, handling childcare vouchers for over 100,000 working parents every month, via 12,000 organisations. For more details visit: www.facebook.com/computersharevoucherservices.