Schoolreaders, a national children’s literacy charity, is delighted to announce that British explorer and author Levison Wood is championing its RACE FOR READING campaign.
The campaign aims to raise vital funds to be able to support more primary school children with their reading skills. Before the pandemic 1 in 4 children was leaving primary school with poor literacy skills and school closures have worsened this situation considerably. According to a Government estimate reported in the Sunday Times, an estimated one in three children is expected to be transitioning from primary to secondary school this year unable to read well*.
Levison Wood comments: “I believe that education is crucial to the nation’s wellbeing and future and ought to be of the utmost priority, especially now after the devastating effects of Covid lockdowns.”
Jane Whitbread, Founder of Schoolreaders says: “We are so grateful to Levison for his support with our RACE FOR READING campaign. Before the initial lockdown almost 13,000 children were receiving a one-to-one reading support session every week from a Schoolreaders volunteer, and our service is needed more than ever because so many children have fallen behind and need help catching up on vital reading skills. Children need to learn to read in order to read to learn.’
“If a child leaves primary school not reading properly, it can have life-long negative consequences as they are unable to fully access their secondary education. Please join us by signing up to our RACE FOR READING campaign and help us to support thousands more children with their reading skills.”
The charity is hoping to encourage as many people as possible to join the RACE FOR READING virtual journey around the world and help make a world of difference to children’s literacy. Participants can undertake a sponsored challenge of any form such as running, walking, cycling, swimming or even walking a dog to help achieve a collective virtual circumnavigation of the globe (25,000 miles) in 80 days. As an accomplished explorer and author, best known for his extended walking expeditions in Africa, Asia and Central America and his best-selling books, Levison is the perfect champion for the Schoolreaders RACE FOR READING campaign.
Schoolreaders provides volunteers to primary schools to give one-to-one reading sessions with children and is now needed more than ever, with one in ten primary schools in this country asking for Schoolreaders volunteers. The charity has seen a huge rise in volunteer registrations this year and has enough volunteers to be supporting more than 20,000 children with a one-to-one reading session each week.
RACE FOR READING has been generously sponsored by our corporate partner, Tritax Big Box, the UK’s leading investment company focused on larger scale logistics real estate.
Colin Godfrey – CEO, Fund Management, Tritax Big Box adds: “We are delighted to sponsor RACE FOR READING 2021. Improving reading skills is key to bringing important social and economic benefits to the communities in which we own logistics buildings. As a partner to Schoolreaders charity, we have seen first-hand the extent to which they are playing an integral role in helping to achieve that, and improving the long-term prospects of many of the UK’s most disadvantaged children.”
