The UK’s National Literacy Trust (NLT) has released the results of its Annual Literacy Survey, revealing that the number of kids who enjoy reading in their spare time has hit an all-time low. 

The London-based nonprofit surveyed more than 76,000 British children ages five to 18 between January and March to inform its report. Only one in three kids (34.6%) say they enjoy reading in their free time, a steep drop of 8.8% from last year, and the lowest level the organization has recorded since it began tracking this metric in 2005. 

In terms of reading frequency, only one in five kids (20.5%) say they read something daily in their free time (down 7.5% from 2023). This represents another historic low—and a sharp drop from 2005, when this figure was twice as high. Daily reading levels dropped across all age groups this year, with 14- to 16-year-olds experiencing the largest decline at 10.9%. 

NLT chief executive Jonathan Douglas has called on the UK government to form a new reading task force to address these declining literacy rates and assess the current school curriculum. The org is also pledging to support 1.5 million children in disadvantaged communities within the next three years with new books and programs to inspire the next generation of readers.