LBC Highlights Vital Work of Schoolreaders in Transforming Children’s Literacy

10 January 2025, 07:12 | Updated: 10 January 2025, 07:38

Every child deserves the chance to unlock their potential.

Currently, one in four children are leaving primary school unable to read to the expected standard.

That’s where Schoolreaders, the largest in-school national child literacy charity, steps in. Schoolreaders recruits, trains and places volunteers into local primary schools, helping to improve children’s reading skills and life chances.

As part of its commitment to improving literacy, Schoolreaders is proud to support KidsWhoReadSucceed with Nick Ferrari, a campaign run by LBC which is looking to encourage children to find more enjoyment in reading.

Schoolreaders volunteers do more than just help to improve children’s literacy. In annual research conducted in partnership with The Institute for Research in Education, Schoolreaders volunteers were found to improve children’s confidence (91%), fluency (81%) and, most vitally, their reading enjoyment increased by 84%.

“We know that reading is the foundation for all learning,” says Sally Wrampling, CEO of Schoolreaders. “Yet, many children—particularly in disadvantaged areas—are not receiving the support they need to become confident readers, which can have a lifelong impact. Our mission is to ensure every child gets vital one-to-one reading time with a trusted adult, to improve their literacy skills and instil a love of reading.”

With over 28,000 children currently benefiting from time with a Schoolreader each week, the results speak volumes. The Headteacher of a Norfolk primary school shared the difference that working with Schoolreaders has made in their classrooms.

“It has made such a huge difference to us to have volunteer readers at the school. We have gone from being in the lowest 10% of schools to being above the national average for the phonics test, with only two children not passing by the end of year 2. We still have 17 children in year two who are able to read, but not fast enough to gain meaning. These will be children who will need to read to an adult regularly to build their fluency. As some of our children very rarely have the chance to read with an adult at home, the volunteer readers make a huge difference, and we are immensely grateful.”

Clearly, the need for Schoolreaders’ volunteers has never been greater.

“Our work wouldn’t be possible without our incredible volunteers,” adds Sally. “They come from all walks of life, united by a common goal: to give children the gift of reading. Many are retired teachers or other professionals, but whatever their background, their commitment and compassion are the heart of what we do.”

Schoolreaders volunteers play a unique role – not as teachers or parents, but as a trusted adult who has chosen to come into school each week to sit with a child one-to-one to help with their reading skills.

Schoolreaders provides free training and resources to volunteers, ensuring they feel confident and equipped to start their time in school. All volunteers are fully DBS checked and inducted with full safeguarding training by the schools when they start.

Schoolreaders is actively seeking more volunteers to support more children in need of literacy support. If you love reading, and can spare just an hour a week, you could become a Schoolreader.

To find out more about Schoolreaders and how you can get involved, visit www.schoolreaders.org.

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Sally Wrampling is the Chief Executive Officer of Schoolreaders

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