Many primary school teachers are having to buy books for their classrooms owing to limited budgets, a new report warns.
In a study released for the 25th anniversary of World Book Day, a survey of more than 800 primary school teachers in January 2022 found that nearly four in 10 teachers (38 per cent) were having to buy books for the classroom out of their own pocket.
Meanwhile, six in 10 teachers had no access to new books.
The Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE) report found that one in four schools (25 per cent) have fewer books than they did before the pandemic, while more than 60 per cent of classrooms have no access to a budget for new books.
Furthermore, 17 per cent of teachers said they relied on donations in order to update their book stock, while 8 per cent said they never received any new books for their classrooms.
Nearly half of those surveyed - 48 per cent - were unable to change books in their classroom during the school year, “meaning the opportunity for children to discover new books and explore their tastes and interests is severely limited”, the report said.
Most primary school teachers (95 per cent) said they had a book corner in their classrooms, but more than half of these (57 per cent) contained fewer than 100 books.
“This rises to 84 per cent of classrooms in early years foundation stage (pre-school and Reception) and 73 per cent of classrooms in Year 1,” the report said.
The report said this was particularly damaging for children who do not have access to books at home and whose reading progress “is likely to have been affected adversely by lockdowns”.
Lack of access must be addressed “urgently”
Louise Johns-Shepherd, chief executive of CLPE, said that classrooms needed “a wide range of books that encourage engagement whoever you are and whatever your starting point”.
“This is even more important for children who may have less access to books at home - and these children are likely to be those who found it difficult to get hold of books during the lockdowns,” she added.
“Our report shows that teachers know and understand this, resorting to resourcing their classrooms themselves to ensure their children have choice in their reading material.”
Cassie Chadderton, chief executive of World Book Day, said it is known that children reading for pleasure has an “enormous impact” on their future.
“If children can’t find books they want to read, the impact on their own lives - and for society at large - cannot be underestimated.”
She added that the report “clearly shows that this lack of access to books needs addressing urgently”.
A Department for Education spokesperson said: “We continue to deliver year on year, real-terms per-pupil increases to school funding with a £7 billion cash increase in the core schools budget by 2024-25, compared with 2021-22.
“Our national funding formula distributes funding fairly, based on the needs of schools and their pupils. It is for local authorities to balance the supply and demand of school places, and school leaders to decide how to spend their budgets.”
