Giving free one-to-one reading support to children

Schoolreaders believe that all children should leave primary school able to read well.  Good literacy at this age is the cornerstone of success in secondary education and in later life. However, one in four children who left a UK primary school in 2019 was unable to read well, and this situation will have worsened due to the disruption to education caused by the pandemic.

Schoolreaders recruit volunteers to listen to children read in primary schools. One-to-one reading support with an attentive adult helps children’s reading fluency, comprehension and enjoyment.  It is a crucial supplement to classroom teaching for many children. ​​Everyone benefits from the Schoolreaders scheme; the children, the schools and the volunteers themselves – a little of their time can translate into life-changing improvements to a child’s reading ability.

During school closures, their mission to help children access good literacy skills has continued. Indeed, there has never been a more important time for this work. Schoolreaders have still been there for children, providing virtual reading sessions and video books for schools and children at home.

“We are very grateful to The Buffini Chao Foundation for supporting our work in Leicestershire, which ensures that we can continue to recruit and place our reading volunteers into schools in the county. Our volunteers are needed more than ever in order to help many, many children (particularly those that were already disadvantaged) to catch up with reading skills and to prevent the effect of school closures on some children’s learning having a long term legacy.”