World Book Day

Resource type: Event

Price band: Free

Key stage: KS1, KS2, KS3

Region(s): All of UK

World Book Day® is an annual celebration of books and the joy of reading that takes place on the first Thursday of March each year. World Book Day 2027 falls on Thursday 4 March.

At the heart of World Book Day are the £1/€1.50 book tokens that allow children and young people to choose a free book from a selection of exclusive World Book Day titles. The books are available through participating booksellers and the vouchers can also be put towards the full price of a book or audio book of their choice. Editions of all the World Book Day books in braille, large print and audio are also available.

The World Book Day website offers a range of suggested activities, tools and competitions to help families, teachers and librarians unlock the fun of reading, based on six key principles of Reading for Pleasure:

Being read to regularly.
Having access to books at home and at school.
Enjoying the freedom to choose what books to read.
Having time to read.
Having access to a community of trusted adults and peers with whom to share and discuss books.
Experiencing reading as a fun and enjoyable activity.

World Book Day 2027 timeline:

September 2026: Launch of the 2027 £1/€1.50 books.
October 2026: Deadline for schools to register their setting to receive their £1/€1.50 book tokens.
December 2026: World Book Day 2027 resources go live.
January 2027: Token packs arrive in schools. Schools that require further tokens after the token packs have arrived can download and print as many digital book tokens as they need.
mid February – mid March 2027: Tokens can be redeemed in bookshops around the country.
4th March 2027 – World Book Day 2027.

Cost: Free.

About World Book Day: World Book Day is the reading for fun charity. Through its activities, the charity aims to encourage children and young people to see reading as an entertaining and social thing to do so that they can enjoy the many benefits that a life-long habit of reading for fun brings.

Further resources:

Explore the World Book Day podcasts produced in partnership with the OURfP team and Wandle English Hub to get ideas and tips from fellow practitioners on how to use World Book Day to promote a culture of reading all year round.
Watch World Book Day’s Overcoming Barriers to Reading for Pleasure webinar and vlog series created in partnership with the Reading for Pleasure team at the Open University for ideas on how to engage more reluctant readers.
Find out more about the latest research on developing a Reading for Pleasure culture in schools.
If you would like to organise an in-person author visit as part of your plans for World Book Day, there are a number of organisations that can help you. Don’t forget that authors get very booked up around World Book Day so get in touch early!
Introduce your pupils to a host of new authors and hear their top tips for reading with a series of ‘Five Questions With…’ videos, created by Authorfy in partnership with World Book Day. The videos are free to view and there is also an accompanying worksheet for pupils to answer for themselves.
Download free resource packs from the National Literacy Trust with ideas on how to promote reading for pleasure by linking it to pupils’ personal interests. The Read Into It Fair contains activities suitable for pupils aged 5-18 and the Gift of Reading pack is aimed at EYFS settings.
The National Literacy Trust has created oracy-based classroom resources to encourage pupils aged 5-14 to talk about their own reading through favourite books and characters. Download the Ultimate Character Champion Battle lesson plans with a free NLT membership.
Explore a range of activities and resources that can be used to celebrate World Book Day and support reading for pleasure all year round from Scottish Book Trust. There are guides with tailored activities for school libraries and EYFS, Primary and Secondary settings.
Find practical strategies and resources to support and nurture multilingual learners’ reading on the Bell Foundation’s National Year of Reading page.
Author Louie Stowell has created a Lokifesto – A Bad God’s Guide to Reading – that can be downloaded to display in your library to encourage everyone to become a ‘terrible reader’.
Help younger readers choose books that will match their reading interests and abilities with this fun animation from the National Literacy Trust.
Encourage young readers to find their next favourite read with the ‘Branching Out’ and ‘Book Match’ booklists and posters from Books for Topics and The Reading Teacher.
Subscribing to one of the comics, magazines or newspapers for children can be a great way to expand your reading offer and engage more reluctant readers.
There are a number of book awards where young people shadow the judges or vote for the winning titles – a great way to build communities around reading and introduce young readers to new authors.
Explore World Book Day’s collections of free video stories and audiobooks as another way to enjoy books together.