Volunteers needed to spread the joy of reading in Greater Manchester’s schools

Good literacy at an early age improves academic achievement and this leads to greater opportunities of all kinds in adulthood.

The National Literacy Trust estimated that in 2021, there were 7.1 million functionally illiterate adults in the United Kingdom, who will likely have difficulty reading the front page of a broadsheet newspaper, understanding the instructions on a medicine bottle, sitting a theory test for a driver’s licence, or succeeding in writing a job application and they have most recently published that in Manchester more than a quarter of five-year-old’s have low levels of literacy.

The Children’s literacy charity Schoolreaders is looking for volunteers who can help to improve these reading statistics and spread the joy of reading to children in primary schools in Trafford.

Schoolreaders recruits volunteers to listen to children read face to face, focusing on schools where children require the most support. Volunteers are asked to listen to children read once a week in term time and to commit to supporting these children for at least one academic year.

The 95% of children supported by Schoolreaders volunteers have improved their reading and partner schools also reported that volunteers had a positive impact on pupils with 95% improving their reading confidence and 87% their reading enjoyment.

Additionally, children benefit enormously from the volunteers as positive role models in the classroom. the Schoolreaders volunteers provide a crucial supplement to classroom teaching and are welcomed by schools and the children.

If more children gain pleasure from reading from an early age and their reading fluency and confidence improves too, communities and society will reap the benefits.”

Sheena, a retiree who is a Schoolreaders volunteer, explains her experience “For me, establishing a rapport with each child and recognising their uniqueness by making the sessions relevant and fun is what counts and the earlier we can do this the better. Reading skills and developing a love of books from the earliest age will hopefully aid children to become confident, interested and engaged readers who read for pleasure. I thoroughly enjoy my time listening to readers and look forward to returning to school after half term.”

To find out more about Schoolreaders visit www.schoolreaders.org. After applying, new volunteers will be matched as quickly as possible to a partner school and be ready to start once they have completed a mandatory DBS check and virtual safeguarding training.