Wellington Shire Council is encouraging local children to keep reading over summer with the launch of the BIG Summer Read program.

Organised by Public Libraries Victoria and supported by Wellington Libraries, the BIG Summer Read is a challenge for people aged up to 18 years old, which kicks off on 1 December and runs until the end of January.

It is aimed at raising awareness of the benefits of maintaining reading skills over summer.

Wellington Shire Council Mayor Ian Bye said while the warmer months naturally meant more time spent outside, reading remained an important activity to ensure children continued to build their literacy skills.

"Summer is actually the perfect time for kids to keep up their reading, since they will have more time to relax while on school holidays," Cr Bye said.

"Having a challenge like the BIG Summer Read makes it an even more fun activity and will keep children engaged and interested in trying to read as many books as they can by the end of January.

"These can be books from home or books borrowed from one of our libraries."

By signing on to take part in the BIG Summer Read, children can go into a local prize draw for Wellington library patrons, with winners announced in February next year.

Families can register for the challenge now at plv.beanstack.org and books will be counted towards the challenge from 1 December.