Right to Read - Raising levels of achievement
Every child has the right to read but not every child has the opportunity. In 2003, one in four 11 year olds did not meet the required standards for literacy set by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES).
How it works
Having received training from Nottinghamshire Education Business Alliance (NEBA) and successfully completing Criminal Records Bureau checks, volunteers from Siemens spend an hour a week in schools listening to children read either in small groups or on a one-to-one basis.
This is part of a wider programme where over 600 volunteers have been trained since the Right to Read and Partners in Maths programmes were launched in Nottinghamshire in July 2002.
Siemens Communications and Trent Vale Infants School
34 volunteers from Siemens Communications in Beeston are helping to change this by supporting primary school children with their literacy and numeracy at two local schools – Trent Vale Infants and Beeston Rylands Junior Schools.
Claire Weldon, Logistics Administrator at Siemens and Right to Read Co-ordinator comments:
“The BITC's initiative is an invaluable one for the local school community, we are delighted to be involved in the Right to Read and Partners in Maths programmes. We are pleased that we are able to support efforts in achieving increased standards in children's literacy and numeracy, such levels are vital for their futures."
School Benefits
- substantially increasing childrens’ literacy/numeracy levels
- building childrens’ self-esteem and aspirations
- presents children with positive role models from business
- the Right to Read / Partners in Maths programme often acts as a catalyst for other links between schools and business
Business Benefits
- helps to increase staff motivation and ‘feel good’ factor towards their company by enabling volunteers to make a difference in their local community
- helping to produce a future generation of literate employees and consumers (Currently over 20% of adults in the UK would fail the required standards of literacy set for 11 year olds and 25% would fail the numeracy standards)
- increased publicity and public profile
Strategic context
This series of case studies has been produced to exemplify some of the ways that local businesses in Nottinghamshire have engaged with their local communities to tackle poverty and disadvantage.
In addition to demonstrating some very practical examples of business engagement, the case studies illustrate how this activity links to strategic objectives of the various LSPs across Nottinghamshire. It is hoped that, in reading the case studies, businesses, Local Strategic Partnerships (LSP) and community groups alike, will better understand the mutual value to be gained from such activity.
Like most of Nottinghamshire, Broxtowe recognises the potential to improve the quality of educational achievement in schools. Broxtowe Partnership’s Community Strategy focuses on 5 key themes – one of which is Education and Lifelong Learning.
The strands of this theme are:
- enhanced Learning 0-16 Year Olds
- supporting progression after age 16
- promoting lifelong learning
Within the last of these, “Facilitating liaison between local employers, community organisations and training providers” is listed as a priority.
The strategic benefits of this activity are:
- helping to raise literacy levels at a key stage of a child’s development
- building positive links between local schools and local employers
The production of this case study has been kindly sponsored by the Government Office for the East Midlands (GO-EM)
