Berkshire charity ABC to Read provides an invaluable service to families in Berkshire, with 99% of those surveyed reporting an improvement in their children’s attitudes to reading.

99% of the local Berkshire children who benefit from a one-to-one ABC to read mentor have improved in their confidence in reading. The result comes from the charity’s most recent annual report, which also highlights that 97% of the youngsters working with them have improved their written communication and 96% have improved their communication with their peers and adults.

ABC to read works with primary school children who have been identified by their schools as struggling most with their reading, with many of the schools assigning their pupil premium to provide an ABC to read mentor. The charity’s model of assigning a volunteer to work with children on a one-to-one basis is achieving excellent results and leaving teachers and children alike thrilled with their progress.  The improvement in the children’s reading also made an impact beyond books, with teachers commenting:

• “The child does not read at home so having someone to read to in class has made a big impact on her reading. Her enthusiasm and engagement has been a big step for a child who thought she couldn’t read and was not interested in it before.“
• “The intervention has really suited the child – she thrives when given 1.1 attention and it has been a real advantage to her to have regular and significant time to read and interact with an adult.“
• “The child finds it difficult to trust some adults and having some one on one time with an adult to focus on her reading and playing games has made her more trusting and confident. All areas have developed: her decoding, blending, fluency, expression and comprehension are all much stronger.”

The children often look forward to their ABC to Read session as a highlight of their week with one child commenting: “I love reading with my volunteer because he is so much fun. We play lots of games and he reads to me as well. We love reading the jokes together!”

The benefits of good reading and comprehension extend beyond the classroom, demonstrated by the 96% of respondents who said their children’s general self-confidence and self-esteem had increased thanks to the time spent with their ABC to read mentor. 86% also reported an improvement in overall concentration.

ABC to read works very closely with schools to ensure that the time children spend with a volunteer mentor complements their work in the rest of their school life and is designed around their specific needs. The annual statistics demonstrate that, as a result of this personalised model, children’s reading levels and general confidence can be significantly increased.

Marcia Rowlinson, ABC to read CEO, said: “As we celebrate 20 years of ABC to read, I’m delighted that so many of our local children are more confident in their reading and communication skills, thanks to our incredible team of dedicated volunteers.”

How to Volunteer for ABC to Read

Celebrating its successes, ABC to read is calling on more volunteers and schools to work across the county.

With many vacancies that could be filled with more volunteers and increasing numbers of children who need support, ABC to read are actively looking for new volunteers to take part in training. Schools that are in need of additional reading support are also being encouraged to sign up for ABC to read mentors. For more information about training days or joining the scheme as a school or volunteer mentor, contact: info@abctoread.org.uk