Kingston to Palermo - Sponsored Cycle Ride in aid of Reading Force

Please help us support British Forces families and children by donating to Reading Force. All the challenges faced by military families are often underestimated; frequent moves of home and school, children having to say goodbye to friends and extended family, and the emotional strain of having a parent working in a war zone.

Reading Force brings Forces families closer together through shared reading. It’s like a book club for the whole family and a way to learn and bond. It is available free to ALL British military families, Army, Navy & Marines, and RAF, including Reservists and veterans.

Reading Force encourages families to read a book together, at home with each other, or while a loved one is deployed or away on training. If separated, the book can be read and chatted about via video calls. The whole family can get involved, as well as friends.

As well as a free book, Reading Force also gives families a scrapbook to fill with thoughts, photographs and drawings about the story they’re sharing, and they can enter it into our scrapbook competition. Talking about books and stories connects families who are separated, as well as providing bonding time when together at home - this supports wellbeing, builds resilience, and creates shared memories.

“The idea of Reading Force is a simple one – to build a bridge of books between absent parents and the children they’ve left behind; to offer a point of contact, a shared experience, something to talk and laugh about together, an intimate experience that dissolves distance.” - Meg Rosoff, Carnegie Medal winning children’s author

Your donation will enable us to send military children free books and special scrapbooks or teen journals, to help keep them stay close during deployments and to give continuity during challenging times.