The first National Magazine Day takes place today, hopefully marking the start of an “inspiring, inclusive campaign designed to help every child discover the joy of reading.”
In its inaugural year, the initiative has already seen more than 10,000 families across the UK enter the nationwide schools competition – a clear sign of how strongly magazines resonate as an accessible, confidence‑building route into reading.
This first‑year success reflects the collective effort of the magazine publishing community. Leading publishers Immediate, DC Thomson, Egmont, Kennedy and Future have come together with distribution partner Frontline, literacy organisations, including the National Literacy Trust, and independent charities such as The Children’s Book Project and Book Bank Charity.
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Alongside these established partners, independent publishers have joined the movement, including Creature & Co, Howzat, Storytime, Launchpad Publishing and Young Stock, demonstrating the breadth, creativity and commitment of the wider magazine sector and delivering more than 70,000 magazines directly into the hands of children who may not otherwise have access to reading materials, reaching families through food banks, community hubs, breakfast clubs and school libraries.
The national schools competition, which ran from 1 July to 1 September, invited parents and carers to nominate their child’s school to receive bundles of children’s magazines. Entries were received from across the UK and 20 winning schools have now been selected from towns and cities across the country, each receiving 250 magazines to support reading for pleasure in classrooms and libraries. Families who nominated a winning school also receive a £100 Amazon voucher as a thank you for taking part.
Ali Foster-Grose, director of community & events at Immediate said: “This first year of National Magazine Day has shown what’s possible when the entire magazine community comes together with a shared purpose. The response from families has been extraordinary, and the support from publishers – from household names to brilliant new indie titles – demonstrates the impact we can have when we work collectively. Our ambition is for National Magazine Day to grow year on year, reaching even more children and helping to make reading accessible, enjoyable and part of everyday life.”
The latest research from the National Literacy Trust, published today, shows that the number of children and young people reading comic books and graphic novels is at its highest level since 2017, with almost half of all children reading comics at least once a month. The findings from the charity’s Annual Literacy Survey found that levels of engagement with comics have increased amongst all age groups and the gender gap has halved, as the format becomes increasingly popular with girls, although boys remain the most likely to read comics.
Of the children and young people surveyed, many reported wanting to read comic books or graphic novels because they can often find stories in those formats which connect to their existing interests, such as TV series, films, video games or hobbies. They reported that comics complemented their wider cultural and media ecosystem, and that the visual elements helped to immerse them in stories and characters.
Lucy Starbuck Braidley, head of school libraries at the National Literacy Trust and host of the Comic Boom: Comics in Education podcast said: “There are lots of ways for children and young people to meaningfully experience reading, with comics and graphics novels continuing to grow in popularity. Children and young people told us this is because comics reflect their interests, help to bring stories to life, create both accessible and immersive reading experiences and support their emotional wellbeing. When children have opportunities to explore reading in all its forms, they are much more likely to find something that feels relevant to them and build an enduring connection with reading, which will shape their lives. Comics can play an important role in children’s reading lives; that’s why we’re encouraging everyone to Go All In on comics in the National Year of Reading.”
National Magazine Day aims to help address this gap in a simple but effective way, using magazines as an inclusive, low‑barrier entry point into reading at home, in schools and in communities. As the initiative grows year on year, the ambition is to reach as many children as possible – ensuring every child has the chance to discover reading in a way that feels fun, accessible and inspiring.
