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Stepping Into Stories celebrates National Year of Reading!
The Stepping Into Stories Kids’ Lit Fest returns from 3–8 February 2026 with a world-class programme of children’s book events, reaching schools nationwide through free virtual sessions.
Listed as one of the top ten children’s book festivals in England for inclusivity, this week-long celebration unites leading lights from across children’s literature to share and celebrate stories in all their wonderful forms. Reaching around 7,000 people annually, 2026 will be an extra special year for the festival, as it celebrates The National Year of Reading launched by the Department of Education and over sixty passionate partners to inspire more people to make reading a regular part of their lives.
Mo O’Hara, children’s author and festival co-director, comments, “Our aim through this festival is to make sure that children from all backgrounds have access to amazing books and diverse role models to spark a lifelong love of reading”.
Centre-stage for 2026 is a brand new festival partnership with leading UK charity, Inclusive Books For Children (IBC).
‘We are delighted to be partnering with Stepping Into Stories’, says Jake Hope, IBC Publisher Liaison Lead and Awards Executive at the Carnegies. ‘Inclusive books can open young minds and transform futures - we’re passionate about bringing them to life through such an inspirational children’s festival’.
Bestselling, multi-award-winning children’s author, Harriet Muncaster, will headline the festival for 2026, with her much-loved Isadora Moon series, which has sold over four million copies worldwide.
Schools across the country are also invited to join, for free, two outstanding, live virtual events with poet, author and former Waterstone's Children’s Laureate, Joseph Coelho (Poems Aloud), and bestselling, former World Book Day author, AM Dassu (Wild Journey).
Other outstanding speakers include: Dapo (Super Goat Girl); BBC Broadcaster, Emma Barnett and entrepreneur, Jeremy Weil (Colour Your Streets); Neill Cameron (Donut Squad); Erika Meza (Brave As A Lion); Ross Montgomery (Small Wonder); Amanda Wood (Wizard’s Guide to Magical Experiments); Mariesa Dulak (Silver Shadow) and many, many more! The festival will culminate in a Big Comics Celebration, featuring Phoenix legends, Sheena Dempsey, Thiago De Moraes, Tor Freeman and Neill Cameron.
Stepping Into Stories, which now has international presence and features fifty events across the week, was started entirely by and for the local community and is run by a small team of creative women, Mo O’Hara, Lucy Reynolds, Margaret Bateson-Hill and Hayley Byfield, in partnership with the amazing team at The Paper Cat Bookshop, Frann Preston-Gannon, Anja Stobbart and Lesley Preston, as the festival’s official bookseller.
Don’t miss this incredible week of storytelling, performance, poetry, creative writing and illustration - run proudly by the local community to bring books to life for children everywhere.
When: 3-8 Feb 2026
Cost: All tickets are pay what you can, with free tickets and concessions available by email
How to book: Tickets sell out fast. For the full programme and bookings, please visit www.steppingintostories.org
See you at the festival!