Free Summer Reading with First News

First News is delighted to provide a free First News digital subscription for every pupil over the summer holiday in 2024. 

We know that reading loss can be a real concern over the summer holiday, especially while the cost of living crisis is biting. 

According to research from the National Literacy Trust, 1 in 15 young people said they do not have a book at home, rising to 1 in 10 young people who receive free school meals* and, in 2023, 1 in 5 (20%) parents said they were buying fewer books for their children, increasing to 1 in 3 (36.1%) of those who were struggling financially as a result of the cost-of-living crisis**. 

So, we’re proud to provide free reading to help schools combat summer reading loss this year. 

If you’re a subscribing school…

You should have been sent an email in June 2024 with more details on how to opt in. Please check your inboxes!  

If you are not sure a representative from your school has received anything yet, please contact us on [email protected]  

 

If your school has not yet subscribed to First News…

Don’t worry! There is still time to make the most of this free summer reading.  

Simply sign up to First News on any subscription, and we’ll be in contact.  

Parents/guardians…

If your school has signed up for free summer reading with First News, they will send out unique details for your school via their newsletter or their parents/guardian communications.  

This will include instructions on how to access your digital newspaper from home!  

If you’re not sure if your school has subscribed to First News yet, or opted in to our free summer reading, why not direct them to this page you are now on? Alternatively, we’ve got a helpful Word document to download here, which you can email straight to your school! 

 

What’s included?

Free digital subscription to First News, available all summer long! Digital access will be immediate from when parents/carers sign up and will expire 5th September 2024.  

• Weekly 28-page digital newspaper live each Friday
• Read and listen to daily news headlines from around the world
• Access to our award-winning video content (with our partner Sky Kids FYI)
• Games and puzzles: Wordie, Crossword, Wordsearch, Splitwords, Sudoku, Number Jig, Kriss Kross, Add Up
• Fun polls and competitions
• Searchable access to the First News archive 

 

Terms & Conditions.

* https://literacytrust.org.uk/research-services/research-reports/book-ownership-in-2022/

** https://literacytrust.org.uk/research-services/research-reports/children-young-people-book-access-cost-of-living/