Six Female Authors Win 2026 Inclusive Books for Children Awards
Six female authors have been announced as the winners of the 2026 Inclusive Books for Children (IBC) awards. These prizes, organized by a literacy charity, recognize the best UK-published inclusive books for children aged one to nine. This year marks the second occasion since the awards' inception in 2023 that all winners are women.
The authors and illustrators will share a £30,000 prize fund and are scheduled to present their work at an event in May.
Category Winners Highlight Diverse Stories
In the children’s fiction category, the winning title was Supa Nova by Chanté Timothy, a graphic novel centered on a young Black girl passionate about science. The picture book award was given to The Beautiful Layers of Me by Sophia Payne and Ruchi Mhasane, which narrates the story of a young girl gaining confidence to wear a salwar kameez for the first time. The baby and toddler category winner was Let’s Play by Alex Strick, Annie Kubler, and Sarah Dellow, a touch-and-feel book incorporating words in sign language and braille.
Judges Praise Inclusivity and Storytelling
The winning books were selected by a panel comprising educators, authors, and illustrators. Judge, illustrator, and author Mei Matsuoka commented on the entries:
“These books are pushing boundaries and opening pathways into worlds that need to be represented more. I was delighted to see how inclusivity was incorporated into sweet, funny and engaging stories without overpowering them.”
According to IBC, judges commended this year’s winners for their “compelling storytelling, strong visual composition and authentic representation.”
Children’s Choice Awards Encourage Reading for Pleasure
The inaugural children’s choice awards, introduced as a pilot scheme to complement the main prize and promote reading for enjoyment, were voted on by primary school pupils across the UK. The winners included Won’t Go! by Sumana Seeboruth and Fotini Tikkou, Cloud Boy by Greg Stobbs, and the main prize winner Supa Nova.
Context: National Year of Reading and Representation Concerns
The announcement of the winners coincides with the launch of the government’s National Year of Reading campaign, which aims to encourage children to read by following their interests and passions. This initiative responds to recent research indicating that reading enjoyment among children and young people is at its lowest recorded level, with only one in three individuals aged eight to 18 reporting that they enjoy reading “very much” or “quite a lot.”
Additional research from last year revealed a significant decline in representation within children’s literature. A survey found that the number of children’s books featuring a Black main character dropped by more than one-fifth between 2023 and 2024. Of the 2,721 books surveyed, only 51 (1.9%) featured a Black main character, representing a 21.5% decrease compared with 2023. The charity described this as a “catastrophic decline in Black representation” and stated the report exposed “stark inequalities” in UK children’s publishing.
