We are delighted to announce a new partnership with premier league footballer and anti-poverty campaigner Marcus Rashford and Macmillan Children’s Books, to launch the Marcus Rashford Book Club – a programme to encourage and nurture a love of reading in children.

As part of the programme, 50,000 free books will be donated to KS2 children in over 850 of our partner primary schools, including mainstream schools, Pupil Referral Units and Special Educational Needs schools. Schools have been offered an allocation of books to distribute among some of their children to own and take home, where they might choose to read the on their own, share with siblings, read with parents or carers, or even during breakfast club.

Our joint mission is to work closely with our partner schools to encourage reading for pleasure amongst children who may not have access to books at home. A 2019 survey by the National Literacy Trust showed that 383,775 UK children do not own a book.

The Book Club will launch in June with its first title, A Dinosaur Ate My Sister by Pooja Puri. The second title in the Book Club will launch in the autumn, with a further 50,000 copies donated to children in our partner schools.

“I only started reading at 17, and it completely changed my outlook and mentality. I just wish I was offered the opportunity to really engage with reading more as a child, but books were never a thing we could budget for as a family when we needed to put food on the table. There were times where the escapism of reading could have really helped me. I want this escapism for all children. Not just those that can afford it. We know there are over 380,000 children across the UK today that have never owned a book, children that are in vulnerable environments. That has to change. My books are, and always will be, for every child. 

"Everyone is aware of my experiences with Breakfast Club - it brightened up the start of my day, it stabilised the school day for me, and allowed me to form life-long friendships. I'm really happy to be partnering with Magic Breakfast to get our books in the hands - and homes - of children who will most benefit from them." - Marcus Rashford MBE

“We are delighted to be part of Marcus Rashford’s Book Club, and we can’t wait to receive copies of the A Dinosaur Ate My Sister to give out to our KS2 children. Our pupils love breakfast and they love reading, so we look forward to hearing how they’ve been able to get lost in their books, and can’t wait to see what’s in store for the rest of Marcus’ Book Club.”  - Jayne Elliott from Mackie Hill Junior and Infant School in Wakefield

“We know the benefits of breakfast in school extend further than filling hungry tummies, it is a special time that also enables children to build friendships, learn through play and sit and read a good book. We know children at our partner schools will be delighted to have a Marcus' Book Club book of their own to take home and keep, which will help inspire a new generation of children to discover the joy of reading.” - Rachael Anderson, Head of Schools at Magic Breakfast

You can follow the official Marcus Rashford Book Club on Facebook and Instagram: @MarcusRashfordBookClub