One in five 'is unable to read at the age of 15'

One in five 15-year-olds and many adults in Europe are unable to read properly, shocking new figures revealed today.

The European Commission study also showed the UK is failing to meet EU literacy targets, with boys, children from disadvantaged households and migrants the most at risk of falling behind.

It follows research by the Education Endowment Foundation which concluded the majority of
11-year-olds are unable to read, write and add up properly when they start secondary school.

The Evening Standard's Get London Reading campaign has highlighted the problem of illiteracy in London.

According to the European study, which covered 31 countries, only five nations - the Flemish-speaking part of Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland and Poland - have managed to reduce the share of poor readers from 20 per cent to less than 15 per cent.