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Are you ready for the Summer Reading Challenge 2025?
The Summer Reading Challenge is free and runs from Thursday 24 July to Saturday 30 August. You can join in at any of Southend's 6 libraries.
The challenge is for children aged 4 to 11 to:
- keep reading during the summer holidays
- visit your local library
- find new books to enjoy
- have a summer full of fun, stories, and nature adventure
🌳This year's theme is Story Garden - Adventures in Nature and the Great Outdoors. It will help children use their imagination by reading stories and learning how nature and storytelling go together in a fun and magical way.
How it works
Join the challenge at any of our libraries from 12 July (or at any time during the challenge).
Borrow books you like and read them at home.
Come back to the library and tell us about the books you read. You will get a collector's card and a sticker for each one.
Keep collecting rewards as you read more books.
The rewards are as follows:
Read 3 books - you will get a bookmark
Read 6 books - you will get: A medal
A certificate
A chance to win prizes like tickets from:
Caddies
Adventure Island
Southend Theatres (Pantomime)
Southend United Football Club
Children under 4 can join the mini challenge. It is a simpler challenge where you read or share 6 books with a grown-up.
When you finish, you get:
stickers
a certificate
a shiny medal sticker
Volunteers will be on hand to chat about the books you have read at:
The Forum
Monday to Saturday - 10am to1pm and 2pm to 3.30pm.
Leigh, Kent Elms, Westcliff, Southchurch and Shoeburyness libraries
Monday to Friday - 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 3.30pm.
Saturday - 10am to 1pm.
Garon Park
We are working with Garon Park to reach families who may not be able to get to a library. They are running a Summer Reading Challenge, Story Garden at their venue on Thursdays - 10am to 3pm from 31 July to 28 August.
