Hundreds of thousands of children don't own a book

Many of you will read books regularly either at home or at school, but imagine if you didn't actually have your own book.

Well that's the case for hundreds of thousands of kids in the UK.

Research from The National Literacy Trust found that children who did have their own book were three times more likely to read above the level expected for their age.

They were also nearly three times more likely to enjoy reading.

The charity surveyed almost 57 thousand children aged from 9 to 18 as part of the annual literacy survey between January and March 2019.

It found disadvantaged kids were more likely than their peers to not own a book, although this gap has almost halved in the past six years.

The organisation has given more than 340 thousand books to children and young people who need them the most.

Jonathan Douglas from the National Literacy Trust says "far too many children are missing out on the chance to reach their full potential simply because they don't have a book of their own at home".

The charity is asking for donations so they can distribute more books and is encouraging people to give books for Christmas this year.