Real Impact for life
Every cent we invest in The Imagination Library program in Australia is shown to return a $10 saving to the taxpayer for every $1 invested, through reduced interventions and higher productivity.
And this matters across every sector of our community.
what we prioritise before age 5, affects every investment made after.
Imagination Library Australia fills the heart, but it also makes a measurable difference before the age of 5, that will impact how ready kids will be to tackle the challenges through their entire life.
The evidence is in for the global and Australian impact. And for Tasmania, we’ve already started our first 6 monthly impact reports through our partnership with United Way Australia, their Head of Research Dr Claire Galea and University partners.
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has gifted over 340 million books to children from birth to age five across the world. Now, this groundbreaking international study, the largest dataset ever collected on shared book reading, reaffirms the program’s powerful impact.
Led by researcher Dr. Claire Galea, the study surveyed more than 86,000 caregivers across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Australia. Families were followed for twelve months and compared with caregivers whose children had not yet received books.
The results are clear: Just 10 books can spark measurable gains in early literacy, vocabulary, and family reading routines. The impact is across all family types, but the greatest impact appears in communities facing the highest barriers.
Based on this evidence of impact, the Rosie’s Reading board opened registrations for all children up to their 4th birthday, knowing that 10 books will improve their preparedness for the very best start at school and in their lives beyond!