One of the very best things about this job is having a spark of an idea and turning it into something more. That is exactly what happened when I found myself idly pondering the demise of my favourite thing in the world (after my children and Jack Russell terrier): books – or, more precisely, English literature. I was an unapologetic swot at school. I swooned over Shakespeare, found profound depths in Joyce (yes, really), and became obsessed with the literature of America’s Deep South. So when the government announced its National Year of Reading 2026 campaign, it seemed the perfect springboard for exploring what schools are doing to foster a love of reading and the study of English literature. The answer, reassuringly, is quite a lot.
Katie Sanderson spoke to several prep schools about how they nurture a love of books in the early years, while Elizabeth Burrows reports on how the school library is being reimagined for the 21st century. It’s out with dusty tomes and sepulchral stacks; in with architectural spaces, robotics suites and tech-savvy librarians. We also asked a fantastic cohort of librarians and English teachers to recommend and review their favourite books about books. Do take a look – there are some real gems in our Top Reads feature.
I delved into the decline and fall of English literature and had the pleasure and privilege of speaking to some extraordinarily engaged, impassioned and articulate literary leaders. Each had an abundance to say, particularly about the place of English in their schools. This was not a conversation about simply getting kids to read. It was about students genuinely engaging with great literature – grappling with its language, its ideas – and taking on that very grown-up, knotty challenge of what it means to be human, which is what the best works have always demanded. What was most cheering was encountering such energy and belief. Even in a world increasingly dominated by screens, the fervour that literature can spark is still very much alive and kicking in our classrooms.
Article continues belowThis issue also includes our Best of the Best Prep Schools – a competition that gets fiercer every year, not just because we received a record number of entries but because so many of prep schools are knocking it out of the park with the education they provide. Indeed, despite the doomsday scenario painted by the media about schools closing, some prep boarding schools are bursting at the seams – Dorothy Lepkowska reports on those getting it right against the odds.
Amanda Constance is the editor of The Week’s Independent Schools Guide. Read the full publication below or click here.