Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, Ed Balls, called today for all parents to get their children to read more at home as they grow up, and announced £5m for libraries to give free books to local nurseries based on a new booklist drawn up by the School Library Association.  He also commented on an international study of children's reading which showed that England's ten year olds are reading fewer novels and stories outside of school than in 2001.

PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) 2006, and the PIRLS report for England, Readers and reading: the national report from England, by the independent National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) were both published today.

PIRLS highlights:

• that the amount of reading overall outside school has fallen;
• that 37 per cent of our ten year olds play computer games for more than three hours a day. This has increased since 2001 and is one of the highest proportions internationally;
• the link between high use of computer games and lower attainment in PIRLS; and
• that children in England read for pleasure less often than their peers in other countries. There is a strong link between the amount of reading for pleasure and their achievement in PIRLS tests.

The PIRLS report for England shows that while our score is still well above the international average, it has fallen since 2001. It says "it is lower achievement among the better readers that has contributed most to the overall fall rather than the small increase in the proportion of weaker readers".

The Secretary of State said:

"Today's PIRLS reports tell the same story as we're hearing in our consultation on the Children's Plan. Parents are worried about striking the right balance between play, reading, TV and computer games at home.

"This study shows that our highest achieving children are reading less, with children's busy days leaving less time for books at home. As parents we have to get the balance right and as a society we have to send the right messages about the value of reading to our children.

 "Today's ten year olds have more choice than in 2001 about how they spend their free time; most of them have their own TVs and mobiles, and 37 per cent of our ten year olds are playing computer games for three hours or more a day - more than in most countries in the study."

Building on schemes which already exist to encourage reading, such as Booked Up (which provides free books for Year 7 pupils) and Boys into Books, Ed Balls also announced today that under a new scheme, Book Ahead, Schools Library Services and public libraries will be given up to half a million free books to make up book boxes for local nurseries, as part of a £5 million drive to get more under 5s - especially boys - into reading early.

Book Ahead means that School Library Services and public libraries will be able to choose free books from a brand new list drawn up by the School Library Association. Libraries will prepare special book boxes to loan out to local nurseries. The boxes will be full of bright new picture books, classics, stories to read aloud and tips for parents to help their young children become familiar with books.

On Book Ahead he added:

"Our programme of free books for secondary schools has been a huge success. That's why we have decided to extend this. We must get young children into reading as early as possible - particularly boys and their dads.

"Early exposure to books affects early learning. A child from a deprived home has heard just 13 million words by the age of four, compared to 45 million in a more affluent home. What starts as a problem with vocabulary rapidly turns into a problem with reading, writing and comprehension, leading to poor exam results.

"Book Ahead will kick off the National Year of Reading. It's just one part of our drive to change the reading culture in this country for the long term."

Full DCSF press release