National Year of Reading kicks off in Suffolk with library fines amnesty

By James Powell | 6 January, 2026

Suffolk Community Libraries is getting behind the National Year of Reading campaign by launching a two-month amnesty to encourage people to borrow and read more books from the county’s libraries in 2026.

2026 has been announced as the National Year of Reading with the theme of ‘Go All In’. The campaign aims to tackle the decline in reading amongst children, young people and adults.

The National Year of Reading has been commissioned and funded by the Department for Education, working in partnership with the National Literacy Trust. Many more partners including schools and libraries across the country will be involved too with various initiatives and events throughout 2026 to promote reading to people of all ages.

Suffolk Community Libraries aims to ‘Go All In’ by making the National Year of Reading the library service’s big campaign for 2026. The aim is to increase reading for pleasure, literacy levels and library use across Suffolk during the year.

A new library charges amnesty launches in Suffolk this week and will run until the end of February. During this time, Suffolk Community Libraries will be waiving fines or coming to an agreement on a lower payment for people who cannot use their library account due to the accumulation of significant fines.

The amnesty has the aim of increasing library use by reducing the barriers of accumulated fines. This will hopefully stimulate book loaning and encourage some customers to start using libraries again. It will also hopefully encourage the return of books which people may have been afraid to return.

If anyone is interested in making the most of the amnesty they can talk to staff at their library. The amnesty only applies to adult books as overdue charges were removed from children’s books in 2019.

There is more information on our amnesty page with a dedicated new webpage set up to promote the National Year of Reading. This is already packed with recommendations and reading ideas. On top of the fines amnesty, Suffolk Community Libraries will also be focusing on the health and wellbeing benefits of reading during January and February and there are already some specialist book collections to enjoy.

Krystal Vittles, Head of Library Service for Suffolk Community Libraries, said:

“The New Year is a great time for a fresh start so we wanted to kick off our Year of Reading by making it easier for more people to visit and use their local library. Overdue charges encourage people to bring books back in time, but we know there can be many reasons for someone accumulating fines. We want to welcome these people back and make it even easier for everyone across Suffolk to have free and easy access to the many thousands of books we have to offer. Please help us to spread the word about this offer!”

Nadia Cenci, Suffolk County Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities, said:

“It’s so important to encourage regular reading. There is much evidence that it can make a real difference to a child’s education and success later in life if we get them reading and enjoying books from an early age, and reading is of real benefit to the wellbeing of adults too. I’m really excited about The Year of Reading and hope everyone in Suffolk will get behind it.”

More information about Go All In – The National Year of Reading

A new national website has been launched to support the campaign. Go All In is being launched to tackle the decline in reading for pleasure amongst children and adults, as highlighted by the National Literacy Trust annual survey in 2025.

Fewer children, young people and adults are reading for pleasure each year, and many say they don’t feel motivated to read. Reading isn’t just a skill it’s a way to explore your interests and what you care about and discover more about the world around you. Declining reading deepens inequality – when people read less, gaps in confidence, skills and opportunities grow.

There will be more events and activities coming later in 2026 with a formal Suffolk launch event in February. The big summer reading campaign for children – Reading Quest – will be back in 2026 and there will be many more ways for people to get involved and to get reading.

What better time to sign up and get a free Suffolk Community Libraries account and library card? You can sign up at any library or via the website suffolkcommunitylibraries.co.uk/join

The National Year of Reading is a Department for Education initiative, delivered by the National Literacy Trust in collaboration with The Reading Agency, BookTrust, World Book Day, Bookmark and the Queen’s Reading Room. The campaign will also work closely with libraries, school and other organisations.