Young bookworms have been recognised for their enthusiasm in the country’s largest summer reading programme.

The Reading Agency, alongside local libraries, organises the Summer Reading Challenge, an Arts Council-backed initiative.

This programme invites children aged four to 11 to read six books before the academic year begins.

In St Helens, 1,041 children successfully completed this year's challenge.

The Mayor of St Helens, Councillor Jeanette Banks, along with Councillor Kate Groucutt, and other councillors presented certificates at ten library events.

The theme for this year was 'Marvellous Makers', and more than 6,200 books were borrowed from St Helens Borough Library Service's seven libraries.

These libraries are located in St Helens, Newton-le-Willows, Haydock, Moss Bank, Eccleston, Thatto Heath, and Chester Lane.

The programme encouraged 223 children and young people to become first-time library members.

To ensure all children had access to the books needed for the challenge, several outreach sessions were held in Billinge, Rainford, Rainhill, and Parr.

These sessions are part of the council's new library strategy, which aims to provide all residents with access to the library's resources.

Councillor Groucutt hailed this year’s Summer Reading Challenge as a success.

She said: "The annual Summer Reading Challenge is such a massive occasion on the library service’s calendar which requires a lot of hard work and organising, so I’d like to thank everyone involved for their efforts, not least our wonderful library staff for facilitating this year’s challenge and organising all the presentation ceremonies to celebrate the achievements of children across the borough.

"It’s great to see such a positive response, with more than a thousand children completing the challenge and thousands more books loaned out to assist with the challenge – and of course hundreds more members welcomed to our service to discover the joys and delights of what our library service has to offer."

Through initiatives like this, the council aims to ensure young people across the borough have the opportunity to continue reading, both in libraries and through the outreach programme.

For more information on St Helens Borough Library Service, including an autumn outreach programme in communities across the borough, visit the council's website.