Babies Get Library Cards at Birth

A new initiative in Cumbria's Westmorland and Furness Council area is offering library cards to babies at birth. This program aims to cultivate early reading skills from infancy. Parents can register their child for a library card during the birth registration process. Each card features a character named Peep the Sheep, from a book by local author Jon Buxton.

Alongside the library card, parents will receive a complimentary book and an information card detailing baby and toddler activities available at local libraries. Councillor Helen Chaffey, cabinet member for communities, praised the scheme, calling it an excellent method for establishing a lifelong appreciation for reading. She highlighted how reading to children fosters secure and connected bonds.

This initiative echoes a proposal by the Cultural Policy Unit (CPU), a think tank, which advocated for automatic library card sign-ups for all newborns. Leading authors, including Sir Philip Pullman, Richard Osman, and Kate Mosse, supported this idea, suggesting it would significantly boost literacy rates across the country. The CPU estimates the nationwide implementation would cost £14-22 million annually, to be funded by the Department for Education and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.