Chapter One Impact Report 2022-23 - Flipbook - Page 7
IT
ALL STARTS
WITH LITERACY
We know that children who read are more likely to
overcome disadvantage caused by inequalities. They
are more likely to be happier, healthier and have
better mental wellbeing and self-esteem. They are
more likely to do better at school and make more
progress across the curriculum. And they are more
likely to develop empathy and creativity.
Even before the learning and developmental losses
caused by the pandemic, children from
disadvantaged communities were leaving primary
school not being able to read to the expected level.
Inequality in education is at the highest in a decade,
and 40% of 11 year olds from disadvantaged
backgrounds now leave primary school not reading to
the expected standard (DfE 2023).
Families face many challenges in supporting children’s
reading at home, and the cost of living crisis has
increased both the numbers of pupils requiring
additional support and their level of need, especially in
the most disadvantaged schools*.
*National Foundation for Education Research 2023.
The National Literacy Trust’s 2023 annual survey
showed that more than 1 in 3 parents who are
struggling financially have said they are buying fewer
books for their children.
Twice as many children on free school meals
reported not having a book of their own compared to
their more affluent peers, and 1 in 5 children aged 5
to 8 said they do not have a book at home. This is the
highest percentage of this age group without books
since the National Literacy Trust began asking this
age group in 2019.
What’s more, there is a crisis of reading enjoyment
among children and young people. Half of children
and young people surveyed by the National Literacy
Trust in 2023 said they do not enjoy reading in their
free time. Reading enjoyment, reading levels at
school and overall literacy skills were the lowest
among children from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Of those children who receive free school meals, 60%
said they do not enjoy reading in their free time.
This widening educational equality has a
geographical basis too. A recent report from the Fair
Education Alliance highlighted the growing regional
disparities in educational outcomes following Covid.
Pupils in London continue to outperform the rest of
the country, with 65% of pupils meeting the expected
standard in reading, writing and maths. In other
regions, the proportion of pupils meeting this
standard ranges between 56% and 59%, with pupils
from the East of England and Yorkshire and the
Humber at the lower end (Fair Education Alliance
Report Card 2022).
The window to help children cement fundamental
reading skills, develop confidence and a love of
books is short, and missing it can make it almost
impossible to catch up.
Meanwhile the scale of the reading gap is so large
that no one agency can tackle it alone. That’s why
we’ve made it our mission to connect children and
schools with corporate volunteers for effective, oneto-one reading support at the time they need it most.
2022-23 Impact Report: The Need
07
