In a recent report the National Literacy Trust says, '3.8 million children in the UK do not own a book; seven years ago 1 child in 10 did not have a book of their own while today the figure stands at a startling 1 child in 3.' They also say that one in six people in the UK has the literacy level expected of an eleven year old!!
By contrast, a separate survey shows 85 per cent of London children own a computer games console.
Changes in society and greater access to technology have meant that in many children's homes books and reading are not considered priorities.
There are free book packs given to parents of newborns, toddlers etc., World Book Day with its free book vouchers and (for now anyway) free accessible libraries; so there is no reason why parents shouldn't encourage children to have books in the home and read them. In many families the only available book is, apparently, an Argos catalogue. My family were very poor and we had no books in the home when I was a child, so I walked the three miles to the library and back every week in order to have books to read.