The National Year of Reading and Employee Benefits
2026 is the official National Year of Reading – a nationwide celebration designed to inspire more people to read for pleasure and spotlight the vital role books play in wellbeing, learning, and community connection. With significant government, media, publishing, charity and corporate involvement expected, the initiative will generate major public attention throughout the year, with an initial spike around World Book Day (March) and another in October.
For the Employee Rewards & Benefits sector, this represents a rare, ready-made cultural moment to support employees, differentiate benefits packages, and show leadership on wellbeing and lifelong learning.
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Why it matters to employers
1. Reading directly supports key HR priorities
- Wellbeing: Regular reading reduces stress, improves sleep, and supports mental health.
- Learning & development: Reading fosters curiosity, creativity, problem-solving and professional growth.
- DEI & belonging: Reading helps amplify diverse voices and stories, strengthening inclusive workplace culture.
These benefits align perfectly with modern benefits strategies that prioritise personal growth, emotional wellbeing, and meaningful employee experiences.
2. High cultural visibility = high engagement
With sustained national media coverage expected – including campaigns from tech platforms, key media institutions, publishers, charities, bookshops, libraries, and education organisations – 2026 will make reading feel even more relevant, timely, and collective.
This is an ideal moment for employers to:
- Refresh their comms calendar
- Launch book-themed wellbeing or learning campaigns
- Provide reading-linked rewards employees actually value
3. Books are budget-friendly, inclusive rewards
Reading rewards are:
- Low-cost, high-impact
- Universally accessible across age, interest and background
- Equally suited for frontline, hybrid, and remote workers
- Easy to personalise to each employee
At a time when benefits budgets are under scrutiny, books offer maximum impact for minimal spend.
How the sector can activate the National Year of Reading
1. Align comms & campaigns with national moments
Use 2026’s built-in awareness peaks – especially World Book Day – to:
- Run “Reading for wellbeing” campaigns
- Organise workplace reading challenges or book swaps
- Share curated reading lists tied to values, skills, or wellbeing themes
2. Integrate book-based rewards Into existing platforms
- Add “reading” categories or collections to reward portals
- Offer book-based incentives for recognition schemes
- Provide flexible gift card options that let employees choose what speaks to them
3. Support workplace literacy & learning
Introduce voluntary reading initiatives such as:
- Learning clubs linked to professional skills
- Pass-it-on book programmes
- Storytelling sessions, author talks, or publisher partnerships
4. Highlight corporate citizenship
Participating in the National Year of Reading also signals:
- Support for literacy charities
- Investment in cultural enrichment
- Commitment to equitable access to reading
Find out more
The National Year of Reading 2026 is a ready-made opportunity for the Employee Rewards & Benefits sector to support national culture, elevate employee wellbeing, and bring genuinely enriching benefits into the workplace.
By aligning communication and reward strategies with the heightened visibility of World Book Day and the year-long initiative, benefits providers can offer employers high-impact, low-cost ways to inspire, connect and empower their people.
Visit goallin.org.uk for information on how to partner with The National Year of Reading.
Visit nationalbooktokens.com/corporate for more information on how to use National Book Tokens as part of your 2026 employee benefits programme, or contact our corporate sales team.
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