Bankstown Council’s wildly popular Summer Reading Club program recently culminated in a grand finale at Bankstown Sports Club attended by hundreds of participants and their families, Bankstown Mayor, Clr Khal Asfour said.

“The initiative, which was launched by Council in 1995 to encourage local children to improve their reading skills has grown into a spectacular success", said the Mayor of Bankstown Clr Khal Asfour.

"This year Bankstown, Panania, Chester Hill, Greenacre and Padstow libraries ran the program during which time 530 Club Members read 12,000 books between November and the end of January.

"It was great to see so many young people turn up to the Presentation Night dressed in their favourite magical costumes and to have our Children’s and Youth Services mascot, Bongo, on hand for photos and entertainment. The whole idea is to make reading fun," Mayor Asfour said.

Mayor Asfour also said that the popularisation of video games, the internet and television is making it even more important for reading to be made into an enjoyable activity for children and young people.

“Reading provides an invaluable opportunity for people of all ages to delve into imaginary worlds of adventure, friendship and fantasy through the pages of their favourite books”, Mayor Asfour said.

“It is particularly important for children and young people in developing one of life’s most essential skills, reading.”

Research has shown that there is a direct link between good reading skills and academic achievement.