Labor is putting more books on library shelves for young Victorians taking on the Premiers’ Reading Challenge.
The $1.1 million Book Fund for 2026-27 lets public libraries stock up on challenge books and materials – including through Vision Australia, so kids who are blind, have low vision or a print disability can take part too.
The challenge has run for more than 20 years. In that time, almost 5 million young Victorians have read more than 68 million books.
Each year, kids read from a book list that covers every reading level and log their progress online.
Funding flows to councils, regional library corporations, Connected Libraries, Myli – My Community Library, Your Library and Vision Australia.
Every book is free to borrow.
The next challenge starts early in the 2027 school year.
As stated by Premier Ben Carroll
“Sixty-eight million books later, the Premiers’ Reading Challenge is still turning kids into readers – and libraries into places they meet.”
As stated by Minister for Local Government Tim Richardson
“Every kid deserves a stack of books to love – and the local library makes sure it never costs their family a cent.”
