Yorkshire authorities such as Bradford and Kirklees were in the vanguard of reader development. Steve Dearden, the Literature Officer at Yorkshire Arts, was the first literature officer in the regions to champion reading. He decided that instead of funding isolated literature development worker or reader in residence posts, Yorkshire Arts would invest in librarians, offering training in literature promotion and reader development skills.
Opening the Book was the contracted consultant and delivered a 12-month structured programme of training and project support to two authorities in the region each year. Opening the Book also facilitated the Reading Promotion Network, which brought key staff from all authorities in the region together for training, support and joint projects, and produced Shifting Issues, a magazine resource for library staff involved in reader development. Creating regional support networks like this for the whole of England became a key feature of the Branching Out programme.