Author donates 30,000 books to UK schools

Kent-based author Tolá Okogwu has donated 30,000 books to UK schools for children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Copies of her book, Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun, were distributed through Bookmark Reading Charity, which has launched its Mind the Gap campaign to help close the literacy gap.

As part of its campaign, Mind the Gap is asking people to volunteer and spend time becoming a one-to-one reader with a child.

Talking on the Kamilah McInnis Show, Okogwu said: "We want kids to read, but they're not going to do it if they're not enjoying it. So I'm all about bringing the fun back to reading."

Last November, 2,000 copies of her Daddy Do My Hair series were distributed through Bookmark, and a further 25,000 copies of her other book - Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun - were donated via Enterprise Mobility and the National Literacy Trust in 2024.

She has also donated books to refugee camps across Africa and Asia.

"There's so many children who don't have books at home or own their own copy of a book at home," Okogwu said.

"And so that's, I think, one of the things that excited me most about donating the books."

A national survey, conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Bookmark Reading Charity, found that only 38% of children read for pleasure frequently.

Barriers to reading include a lack of time, digital distractions and lack of library access, and these barriers are more acute for disadvantaged families, Bookmark says.

This further widens the literacy gap - the discrepancy in reading attainment between disadvantaged children and their peers- and can affect children's wellbeing, Okogwu said.

She added: "It affects equality because it puts them on the back foot from their peers. And it's something that Bookmark is really passionate about closing."

To combat this, the charity is encouraging more adults to volunteer to support children who are falling behind in reading, citing that "just one hour a week to ignite the joy of reading can change the course of a child's future".

"We cannot close the literacy gap without public involvement", says Emily Jack, CEO of Bookmark Reading Charity.

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