We target our work at disadvantaged families across Wandsworth. We help young children start school ready to read. We help primary-age children develop a love of reading, while building reading skills and confidence. We encourage and equip parents to support their children’s learning at home.
Categories
Beneficiaries
Situation
Literacy empowers and liberates. Children eligible for free school meals are less likely to read well and can be up to a year behind wealthier children before even starting school. They then become adults whose reading skills are inadequate to fully access modern daily life, with worse physical and mental health and a greater likelihood of being unemployed - trapped in poverty as a result. In 2023, 25% of pupils leaving Wandsworth primary schools missed the Government’s expected reading targets.
Solution
We aim to break the cycle of illiteracy and poverty, transforming children's lives. Our classes for 0-4 year olds and their parents, focusing on songs, stories and speaking & listening games, prepare children to be ready to read when they start primary school. We offer weekly one-to-one support from trained volunteers for primary-age children struggling with reading, building reading skills, confidence and enthusiasm. And we empower parents to support their children's reading journey at home.