YOUNG volunteers who gave up part of their summer holidays to support Thurrock Libraries' Summer Reading Challenge were honoured at a special ceremony at Blackshots Civic Hall, on Thursday, 8 October.

This year, 68 young people volunteered to support the reading challenge, encouraging younger children to read six books or more over the holiday period.

Borough Mayor Cllr Bill Cook was in attendance to present volunteers with their certificates.

Cllr Cook told volunteers: "Congratulations on your achievements. You have shown that age is no barrier to leadership, and service is not just something we talk about but something we do."

Cllr George Monk, cabinet member for Heritage and Culture, said: "These amazing young volunteers gave up part of their summer to help inspire a love of reading in children and support our wonderful libraries.

"Thank you to them for their efforts and for showing a community spirit that we can all be proud of."

The 68 volunteers, aged between 13 and 17, contributed more than 1,300 hours to the reading challenge over the summer.

Sofia, 17, said: "I've been volunteering for the reading challenge for a couple of years, and it's such an amazing opportunity to get kids into reading. In this digital age it is so important that they are picking up books that they are excited by."

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Owen, 17, said: "This is my second year, and I really like engaging with the children and encouraging them to enjoy reading. Being a volunteer has also improved my own confidence and helped my communication skills."

This year's 'Read to the Beat' challenge, held across all Thurrock libraries, encouraged 2,179 children to read over the summer holidays.

Every Summer, the reading challenge encourages children of all ages to keep reading what they enjoy, helping maintain and improve their reading skills for when they return back to school.

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