McDonald’s UK hits reading target to hand out 22m books over the past two years
McDonald’s UK has hit its pledge to put 15m books into the hands of families by the end of 2014, with over 22.7m actually handed out over the past two years.
The McDonald’s ‘Happy Readers’ campaign was launched in January 2013 in response to research showing that one in three children don’t own a book and only half of children enjoy reading.
Partner organisations including the National Literacy Trust, WH Smith and Kobo, have helped McDonald’s give away some of the UK’s best-loved family reads with Happy Meals, including the DK Books’ Amazing World non-fiction series and books from authors such as Enid Blyton.
Alistair Macrow, senior vice president of marketing at McDonald’s UK, said: “Our restaurants have always been a colourful and exciting place for families to visit, and two years ago we realised we could leverage our scale, our partnerships and our presence in communities across the country to help millions of mums, dads and children find the fun in reading.
"Reading is something families continue to love doing together, and Happy Readers has really struck a chord. I’m delighted we’ve been able to put more than 22 million books in to the hands of families around the UK. It’s a fantastic achievement and something we will remain committed to in the future.”
Partnerships have seen families able to download a free e-book from Kobo with every Happy Meal promotion and WH Smith offering ‘Happy Readers’ £1 book offers every day of the year.