Bookstart scheme

Bookstart is a national programme run by the reading charity BookTrust. It is designed to support families discover the magic of shared reading from their earliest days.

Sharing books, stories and rhymes with your child from an early age can help create a lifelong reader.

Bookstart Baby Pack

This pack is gifted to children and their parents/carers by the health visiting teams during your baby's first year to help families share stories, rhymes and songs. You can ask at your local library if you don't receive a pack from the health visiting team.

The Bookstar Baby Pack includes: 

• a book
• a finger puppet
• tips for sharing stories with babies

Additional needs packs

Bookstart also gifts additional needs packs for babies and toddlers. The packs available are:

• Booktouch for blind or partially sighted children
• Bookshine for children who are deaf
• Bookstart Star for children with conditions affecting their fine motor skills

You can ask at your local library to request a pack.

Booktouch

There are two packs for blind or partially sighted children:

• Booktouch Baby (0 to 2 years)
• Booktouch Toddler (3 to 5 years)

Each pack contains:

• a touch-and-feel book
• guidance around sharing books with children with vision impairment 

Bookshine

There are 2 packs for children who are deaf:

• Bookshine Baby (0 to 2 years) 
• Bookshine Toddler (3 to 5 years)

Each pack contains:

• a book
• guidance around sharing books with deaf children

Bookstart Star

This pack is available for children aged 3 to 5 years who have disabilities that impact, or delay, the development of their fine motor skills. Each pack contains:

• a book
• a finger puppet
• and a guide to using your finger puppet and reading with children

The Bookstart Bear Club

The Bookstart Bear Club is a fun and engaging free reward scheme for all babies, toddlers and preschoolers and their families.

How to join

If you are a library member, you can join the Bookstart Bear Club in your local library, and receive your Bookstart Bear Club stamp sheet.

After you join

The aim is to collect paw stamps on your stamp sheet.

You get a stamp for:

• borrowing books
• sharing books in the library
• attending Rhymetimes or book-related activities

Each time you have 6 stamps you will get a certificate. There are 10 certificates to collect.

Last updated 05 August 2026