Storybook Village

14/10/2026

Thank you! 📚

This time we are asking you for something....a little something extra we're collecting at The Oak...

Most of you know that we collect soft toys for (SERV Suffolk & Cambridgeshire), but we're now extending our collection to include children's books too! ❤️

A lovely lady came to see me last week and, as these things often do, our conversation somehow ended up on books. I discovered that she has started a wonderful initiative called Storybook Village, which collects preloved books and gets them into the hands of children in our local area — helping to make sure they keep reading, discovering new worlds and losing themselves in the magic of a good book.

You could say she's our very own local Dolly Parton!

So, if you're having a pre-Christmas clear-out and find yourself with children's books that have been loved but are ready for a new home, please feel free to drop them into us at The Oak.

And of course, we'll still happily take those soft toys for SERV too!

A book here, a teddy there... it doesn't feel like much, but together we can make a difference without really trying. ❤️

So have a rummage, clear a shelf, and bring them our way!

14/10/2026

Do you have pre-loved books suitable for children aged 0-11 years that you’d like to donate to Storybook Village? You can now drop them off at The Royal Oak, Warboys!

Thank you to everyone who donates secondhand children’s books. Your kindness and generosity allows more books to be shared with local children 📚

A huge thank you to The Royal Oak Warboys for becoming a drop-off point for Storybook Village books! 📚

If you have pre-loved children’s books suitable for ages 0–11 years that you’d like to donate, you can drop them off at The Royal Oak, Warboys, between now and Christmas!

🎄 Christmas and winter-themed books will become part of our Christmas Book Hunt!

📖 All other books will continue their journey through Storybook Village, supporting our events, our Tiny Tales To Go outreach project, and helping us share the magic of reading with local children.

A huge, huge thank you to everyone who donates children’s books. Storybook Village runs entirely on donated books, and every donation helps us reach more local children 📚

13/10/2026

A huge thank you to The Royal Oak Warboys for becoming a drop-off point for Storybook Village books! 📚

If you have pre-loved children’s books suitable for ages 0–11 years that you’d like to donate, you can drop them off at The Royal Oak, Warboys, between now and Christmas!

🎄 Christmas and winter-themed books will become part of our Christmas Book Hunt!

📖 All other books will continue their journey through Storybook Village, supporting our events, our Tiny Tales To Go outreach project, and helping us share the magic of reading with local children.

A huge, huge thank you to everyone who donates children’s books. Storybook Village runs entirely on donated books, and every donation helps us reach more local children 📚

06/10/2026

Storybook Village is back on the radio! 🎄📚

I’ll be talking to Black Cat Radio from 8am tomorrow morning, all about Storybook Village and our Christmas Book Hunt!

With around 250 Christmas and winter-themed children’s books being hidden across local communities, this year’s Christmas Book Hunt is set to be the biggest yet!

Tune in tomorrow to hear how the Christmas Book Hunt works, how local spaces can get involved, and how these hidden books create a little extra Christmas reading magic for local children ✨

Thank you to Black Cat Radio for having Storybook Village back on the radio. I’m looking forward to chatting tomorrow morning! 📻📚🎄

04/10/2026

Today, I had the honour of representing Storybook Village at the annual Justice Service at Ely Cathedral.

I was delighted to have been invited by the High Sheriff of Cambridgeshire, Francis Burkitt, to attend this special ceremony.

The Justice Service not only recognises our justice system and the many people who work within it, but also celebrates the charities, community groups, and volunteers working across Cambridgeshire to support their communities and help make a difference.

It was a real privilege to be part of such a significant and historic occasion, and to meet so many people from different organisations and communities.

I’m very proud to have been there representing Storybook Village 📚❤️

04/10/2026

📚🎄 Storybook Village is looking for local community spaces to join our 2026 Christmas Book Hunt! 🎄📚

As 2026 is the National Year of Reading, I’m planning the biggest and most ambitious Storybook Village Christmas Book Hunt yet!

Around a week before Christmas, approximately 250 Christmas and winter-themed children’s books will be hidden across local communities for children aged 0–11 years to discover and take home.

I’m looking for cafes, pubs, community spaces, museums and other family-friendly venues who would like to take part by having a small selection of books hidden around their venue for children to find.

Participating venues would receive around 5–10 prepared books to hide or display around their space, giving local children the chance to discover a surprise story during their visit.

I already have some lovely venues taking part, and I’d love to welcome more from across the local area!

Storybook Village is a grassroots reading initiative that I started voluntarily in 2021. Since then, it has distributed an estimated 8,500 children’s books to local families.

It is not associated with Usborne Books or any other bookseller, and runs entirely through kindness and donations of secondhand children’s books.

If you run a local venue that might like to take part, please get in touch. I can bring the prepared books to you later in the year, ready for the Christmas Book Hunt. 📚🎄

Let’s get even more children discovering the magic of finding a book this Christmas! 🩷

11/09/2026

While it may seem like Storybook Village is a little quiet between events, there’s lots happening behind the scenes! 📚

I’ve had a number of beautiful book donations recently, including this car-full! 🚗📖

These books will be sorted and made ready to pass on to more little readers.

I’m very grateful to everyone who continues to donate books and help keep Storybook Village growing. If you’ve got secondhand children’s books that you’d like to donate, please send me a message! 🩷📚

28/08/2026

🎄📚 Our biggest Christmas Book Hunt yet! 📚🎄

This year is the National Year of Reading, so I thought we should finish the year with our most ambitious Christmas Book Hunt yet! 🎅📚

In the week before Christmas, Storybook Village will be hiding wrapped children's books in various locations across our local area, ready for little readers to discover and take home to keep.

Each book will be wrapped in cellophane and accompanied by a little Storybook Village leaflet, so children and families can find out more about the project too. 🎄

I’m hoping to spread the books across lots of different local areas this year, making it easier for even more children to stumble across a little Christmas reading surprise!

🏡 Are you a local business or venue?
I’d love to hear from businesses and venues who might be interested in taking part by hiding a few Storybook Village Christmas books for local children to discover. If you think your venue could be a good fit for the hunt, please get in touch and we can chat about how it could work.

📚 And I’m still looking for more children's books!
If you have any good-quality children's books that are looking for a new home, I’d love to hear from you! All donations of gently used children’s books for ages 0-11 years are very gratefully appreciated! Any Christmas or winter themed books will be used to help me continue the Christmas Book Hunt, and all others can continue their journey to new readers through Storybook Village events.

Every book has the chance to become somebody's new favourite story 💛

If you have books to donate, or you're a local business or venue interested in getting involved, send me a message or email [email protected]🎄📖🩷

Let's make this Christmas a little more bookish!

26/08/2026

📢 Calling all WIs, U3As and community groups! 📢

Would your group like to hear the story behind Storybook Village? 📚

What happens when a child doesn't know what a book is?

In 2021, one little comment inspired the creation of Storybook Village - a grassroots literacy initiative helping local children aged 0–11 years discover the joy of books and making sure that access to reading isn't limited by a family's circumstances.

Five years later, an estimated 8,500 books have found new homes with little readers through Storybook Village events and outreach. Along the way, the initiative has grown from a small idea into a much-loved community project, with events and Tiny Tales To Go, an outreach project taking books directly into early years settings and community groups.

I've had some wonderfully unexpected opportunities to share Storybook Village along the way, including radio appearances - including Christmas Eve coverage with the BBC! - and visits to events from some very special civic guests.

Now, I'm offering the opportunity for groups to hear the story behind it all!

My talk takes you behind the scenes of Storybook Village: how one child's comment became the starting point for a five-year journey, the realities of literacy deprivation, why access to books matters, and the stories and moments that have made the project so special.

It's a talk about books, community, and the difference that can begin with one very small idea - and perhaps a little bit of magic along the way! ✨

If your WI, U3A or community group would be interested in hearing the Storybook Village story, please get in touch with me for more information 😊

And if you know a group who might enjoy hearing how one little comment led to 8,500 books finding new homes, please feel free to tag them or share this post. 💚📚

22/08/2026