The Reading Agency

Reading Well Books on Prescription is a reading scheme which focuses on making self-help publications more readily available to patients suffering with a range of health problems. The idea is that healthcare professionals, where appropriate, can prescribe self-help reading from approved lists of books available in public libraries. There is growing evidence to suggest that this delivers therapeutic benefits for certain people who have been identified by their mental health professional or general practitioner, for example, as potentially benefiting from this type of help.
The national Reading Well Books on Prescription scheme has been endorsed by NHS England (Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) and Children and Young People’s Mental Health) and Public Health England, alongside a range of other national health bodies. The national development of Reading Well Books on Prescription is quality assured. The programme works within the clinical guidelines published by the National Institute for Health and
Care Excellence (NICE) and includes curated core book lists being available in all English libraries.
Reading Well is delivered by The Reading Agency in partnership with Libraries Connected as part of the Libraries Connected Universal Health Offer. It is funded by Arts Council England, The Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport and Welsh Government.