Concern over lack of reading

More than two-fifths of UK teachers say children are turned off reading for pleasure by the time they finish primary school, a survey reports.

The survey, which questioned 410 secondary school English teachers, found the majority (94%) thought their pupils preferred to spend time online.

Two-thirds of those polled said reading was not seen as "cool" by pupils.

And 97% thought parents could do more to encourage their child to read, the survey for publishers Pearson found.

Nearly three-quarters (74%) warned that pupils did not spend enough time reading outside the classroom.

Some 83% of teachers said boys were likely to be engaged by fantasy novels, while 65% said the same for girls.

And 93% of teachers said that boys were likely to find horror books engaging.

The survey was commissioned to mark the launch of a new set of classroom reading books.

The Heroes series includes novels by Bali Rai, Nigel Hinton, Chris Priestley and Cathy Forde.

The books are all in genres that weaker readers tend to prefer - action, crime, fantasy, horror and adventure.

They are made up of short chapters or scenes that include plenty of dialogue and action, as well as cliffhanger endings.