Free Books for Children Through Council’s Maternal and Child Health

Published on 22 August 2025

Throughout the next 12 months, Council’s Maternal and Child Health Service will distribute 500 free literacy packs to local families, helping children build essential skills and encouraging a lifelong love of reading.

Families will receive a literacy pack at their Key Ages and Stages visit at the Family and Children Centre when their child reaches key developmental milestones — birth, 4 months, 12 months, 18 months and 3.5 years.

Each pack includes age-appropriate materials like picture story books, songs and activities that parents can share with their child, as well as other helpful information to support learning, development, and play.

The literacy packs have been carefully curated by Maternal and Child Health, Supported Playgroup and Library staff to ensure they meet the developmental needs of children and offer valuable guidance for families.

Mayor Cr Steve Rabie said the literacy packs will offer valuable guidance and a starting point for parents when it comes to introducing their children to reading, stories and songs.

“We want to make sure children in our community get the best start in life. Supporting families with early literacy is one way we can help children’s learning and development,” he said.

“Reading is such an important building block in education. Starting earlier is linked to better IQ later. With the literacy packs parents can begin reading, singing and playing with their child right from birth, showing them what it’s about and starting them on the way to reading themselves. This is a huge help with their language development, cognitive skills and emotional wellbeing. It also helps create strong parent-child bonds.

“The packs also provide information about the Mansfield Library and the programs available to young children. Our local library is a fantastic place to explore the world of reading, and I can’t encourage young families strongly enough to get their child involved and spend time there,” Cr Rabie said.

The literacy packs are funded through the Victorian Government’s Enhanced Maternal and Child Health program.

To receive your free literacy pack, book your child’s next Key Ages and Stages appointment with Council’s Maternal and Child Health Service on (03) 5775 8537.