🔎 If you are concerned about the huge pressure children and young people face and want to hear cutting edge research into how reading can develop children’s empathy skills, take a look at our Raising Generation Empathy Conference on 27 November. Book your ticket today!

Join us in Cheltenham on 13 October for this one-day conference packed with inspiration, creativity and practical tools to help foster a reading culture that’s fit for the future. Booking at www.cheltenhamfestivals.org

Countdown to Michael Rosen Day 2025! From giggles to goosebumps, his stories spark joy, creativity & empathy. This Nov, he joins us at the Raising Generation Empathy Conference on how stories power empathy through reading.

The festival reached 802,711 across the UK & beyond. Huge thanks to everyone involved! Now we’re building momentum for the National Year of Reading 2026. Join us to help grow an empathy-educated generation.

We were thrilled to join the Youth Libraries Group Conference earlier this month.
 Our co-founder Sarah Mears spoke alongside author Rashmi Sirdeshpande and Empathy Collection judge Sarah Smith. Together, they shared how reading can be a powerful tool for building empathy and understanding.

We want every young person to benefit from a powerful reading-based empathy education. It's accessible for everyone and can make tangible change in schools and communities. Join us on 27 November to find out more

Do Something That Matters this November. Join Empathy Action Month, to inspire real change for your wellbeing, your friends & family, community or the planet. Fantastic FREE new resources & author events to join from the classroom. Register now for early access from 10 October.

We’re bringing stakeholders together to explore how reading-based empathy education can better support young people’s wellbeing and reading enjoyment. Hear from experts in psychology, education & literature, and add your voice to drive real change. How would you answer?

📣 Fresh solutions for youth wellbeing & reading for pleasure. New Raising Generation Empathy speakers: Jonathan Baggaley, PSHE Association Jane Oakhill, University of Sussex Ed Jewell, Libraries Connected

September is #WorldKidLitMonth - the month to read children’s literature from other countries. Where will you fly by book?

📣 Fresh solutions for youth wellbeing & reading for pleasure. New Raising Generation Empathy speakers: Jon Biddle, Moorlands CofE Primary Academy A.M Dassu, Author Jion Sheibani, Author & illustrator

📣 Fresh solutions for youth wellbeing & reading for pleasure. New Raising Generation Empathy speakers: Patrice Lawrence, MBE, author Aimée Felone, co-founder, Knights Of Prof Anthony Kessel, NHS Clinical Director & children’s author

📚 Your next favourite character is waiting...and they might just change how you see the world These empathy-boosting from the Read for Empathy Collection are available to buy through the link in our bio or via bookshop.org

It’s time for fresh solutions to crises in young people’s wellbeing & reading for pleasure. Michael Rosen, author, former Children’s Laureate Robin Banerjee, University of Sussex, Professor of Developmental Psychology Teresa Cremin, Open University, Professor of Education

🌞📚 Nothing beats a sunny day and reading a good book! You can check out the full Read for Empathy Collection through the link in our bio or via bookshop.org

Yes! We agree! And not only is empathy our superpower, it’s also a skill we can develop at any age. Find out more about how empathy can be learnt through our short online trainings and online resources, or attend our Raising Generation Empathy conference this November

With concerns around young people’s wellbeing & a significant decline in reading for pleasure, we urgently need evidence-based, cross-sector responses. Raising Generation Empathy is a landmark conference uniting disciplines, focused on embedding empathy education. Link in bio

📚 With the summer holidays in full swing we have a fantastic collection of empathy boosting books you can dive into! ⭐️You can shop our full Read for Empathy collection through the link in our bio, or visit bookshop.org

As awareness grows around the power of social & emotional skills, we're spotlighting a promising, reading-based approach to empathy education. 📅 Join us 27 Nov for the Raising Generation Empathy Conference, bringing together experts to shape real change. 🎟️ Book now, link in bio

Reading builds Empathy! Buy ANY book 18-20 July, and you could win a £250 @bookshop_org_uk digital gift card! A powerful way to support our hard working independent bookshops, & make a real difference for them and their communities 🔎 Find out more via Bookshop.org

📚 Looking for your next empathy-building read? Our bookshelf is perfect for shared family reading! ⭐️ Shop the full collection via link in bio or bookshop.org 📣 Buy any book 18–20 July & enter to win a £250 @bookshop_org_uk gift card!

🔎 Worried about the pressure on young people? Discover how reading builds empathy at our Raising Generation Empathy Conference, 27 Nov. 🎟️ LIMITED, early bird tickets just £95 🗓️ Link in bio to book!

📣Love writing? Enter Calibre Audio’s Inclusive Voices competition—open to all ages & abilities! 📚Write a short story (max 550 words) around Audio, Braille or Community. Free entry + prizes! Open until: 5 Sept 2025 www.calibreaudio.org.uk/news/inclusi... #WritingCommunity #InclusiveVoices

A huge THANK YOU to everyone who joined #EmpathyDay from 30+ countries and across the UK! The world needs empathy more than ever - let’s keep shouting about the power of books to build it. See you next #EmpathyDay on 11 June 2026! 📚

We’re proud to support @literacy_trust & DfE in the National Year of Reading 2026, a vital step in nurturing empathy, wellbeing, and connection through books. Join us 27 Nov at Raising Generation Empathy to explore the power of reading for real-life impact. Link in bio.

Did you know that empathy is a learnable skill, not a character trait? Research shows that just 10% of our empathy is genetic, the other 90% is learnt through social and environmental factors - and it can be developed at any age!

Let's raise an empathy educated generation, inspired to create a better world for everyone. Join us this November for Raising Generation Empathy - a major research & practice conference exploring empathy in education. 🗓️ Early bird tickets and more info via link in bio

📣 Deadline extended WIN 3x £100 Puffin picture book libraries 🐧📚 To enter: send a pic of your setting’s Empathy Day Festival fun to [email protected] (subject: First Time Feelings) by 27 June! With thanks to @PuffinBooks 💛 Ts&Cs apply.

🌈 Jump into someone else’s story this pride month! Be inspired by these recommended stories, use our top tips to read for empathy, or watch LBTQ+ author & activist Sarah Hagger-Holt as she dives into stories with Ashley Hickson-Lovence in an empathy chat. 📚

It's #RefugeeWeek (16–22 June). We are proud to have partner with @RefugeeWeek for a powerful #EmpathyDayFestival event with AM Dassu & Sita Brahmachari. Explore refugee experiences & create your own Empathy Resolution. For ages 8+. Watch on catch-up till 12 July. Link in bio

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We ❤️Libraries!

Thank you so much for these excellent recommendations to add to our Empathy Bookshelf!

Happy Empathy Day! Celebrate the power of reading with @empathylabuk.bsky.social Empathy Festival events. We're so proud to have two books in the Read for Empathy Collection 2025: Bird Boy by Catherine Bruton and Destiny Ink: Sleepover Surprise by Adeola Sokunbi ❤️ empathylab.uk/empathy-day-...

Are you taking part in the EmpathyDayFestival? 🥳If you're looking for a 'A powerful, evidence-based approach that harnesses the power of reading to develop empathy', then do take a look at the @EmpathyLabUK website!... empathylab.uk/empathy-scho... 😊

Thank you for sharing these gorgeous picks to add our Empathy Bookshelf! #EmpathyDayFestival

Thank you for all your Empathy Day contributions Tom!

Today is Thursday 12 June 2025. It is Philippines Independence Day 🇵🇭 also 🛑 World Day Against Child Labour ⚕️ International NASH day (liver) 🩲 Superman Day ❤️ Loving Day 🌹 Red Rose Day 🧆 Falafel Day 🫂 Empathy Day 🚜 Farm Workers Day French Republican Calendar: BEDSTRAW

Beautiful words. Thank you for all you do to support Empathy Day and EmpathyLab! ❤️

Oh wow! This looks amazing - thank you for taking part!

Thank you so much for taking part - your events looked FAB!

Libraries across the country have been helping everyone jump into stories! How brilliant does this look?!

Happy #EmpathyDay @empathylabuk.bsky.social. Empathy is a great superpower and the SuperQuesters use empathy all the time. You can develop your empathy superpower by doing three things: Read. Connect. Act. Find out more about Empathy Day for schools and at home: tinyurl.com/ytsyu6b4

Thank you @booktrust.org.uk

🎉Happy Empathy Day!🎉 Today, we're celebrating the power of reading to build real life empathy. Help us raise an empathy-educated generation. Whose story will you jump into today? How are you celebrating Empathy Day? Tag us in your photos and stories we’d love to see them!

🎉And we're off! 🎉 Our brilliant Children’s Laureate @Frank_CottrellBoyce and a whole host of amazing author and illustrator friends taking part in the EmpathyDayFestival share what we have in store for you! Join us - register for your free resources at www.empathylab.uk

⭐️Whose story will you jump into today?⭐️ The Empathy Day Festival is in full swing! If you haven't yet registered there's still time to get your free resources and toolkits. Come and celebrate the power of books to build real-life empathy. Visit the link in our bio!

Happy #WorldBookDay! 🎉📚 We inspire children and young people to read for fun, because it makes a serious difference to their lives. Show us how you #ReadYourWay and stay tuned for a day full of fun! ✨

Happy World Book Day from everyone at EmpathyLab! 📚⭐ @worldbookdayuk.bsky.social are asking you to think about how you read your way. Two of our team have put together some reading recommendations showing how they enjoy reading for empathy with books from the 2025 collection. [CONT in thread]

Delighted to be this morning's stop on the @empathylabuk.bsky.social Read for Empathy Discovery Tour. I want to mention the poetic brilliance of And I Climbed And I Climbed by @stephenlightbown.bsky.social (illustrated by Shih-Yu Lin, published by @troikabooks.bsky.social). Full of emotion and hope.