ALMOST 10,000 young Gloucestershire book lovers were part of this year’s highly successful Summer Reading Challenge.

The event saw children aged from four to 12 years old sign up to read six or more books over their six week summer holiday and this year 9,578 enjoyed making use of their local library.

A record 637 children joined a library in order to take part. Older children and young people aged up to 24 also got involved in the Summer Reading Challenge by volunteering in a library to encourage children to take part and this year more of them signed up in Gloucestershire than anywhere else in the country.

Gloucestershire had the most young volunteers, called Reading Activists, who reported back the skills they learned to the organisers The Reading Agency, in the UK.

As a result the library service has been given a £500 prize which will be spent on buying new books which young people will help choose as well as library craft materials.

They helped in a variety of ways such as enrolling children into the Summer Reading Challenge and encouraging them to read six books over the summer, although many children read more than the minimum six.

Many of the Reading Activists were volunteering as part of their Duke of Edinburgh awards scheme and gained new skills which they can use on CVs and personal statements.

The theme of this year’s Summer Reading Challenge was the Mythical Maze where children could meet fantastical creatures from the world of legend and mythology, including a yeti and a Minotaur.

Councillor Andrew Gravells, Gloucestershire County Council cabinet member for libraries said: “I am really pleased to hear that this year’s Summer Reading Challenge was a resounding success.

“We had almost 10,000 young children take part and more young people signed up to volunteer than in anywhere else in the country which is something Gloucestershire should be very, very proud of.

“The Summer Reading Challenge helps libraries to reach more children, to increase library visits and borrowing and to make a real difference to children’s confidence and reading development.”