News |
Minister for Children and Families calls on local areas to prioritise literacy
Speaking at the National Literacy Trust’s conference for leaders in local government, the Minister of State for Children and Families Sarah Teather said that local areas should prioritise literacy as a
cost-effective way to improve life chances. The event brought together key figures from local authorities to discuss how some of them are working with us to improve literacy in their area. For a summary of the event please visit our website
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Baroness Prashar becomes our new President
We are delighted to announce that Baroness Usha Prashar will be our new President following the sad death our founder and former President, Sir Simon Hornby, earlier this year. Baroness Prashar of Runnymede has been an instrumental figure in the development of the National Literacy Trust from its very beginnings. Read more
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To celebrate the launch of its UK website, Better World Books is offering our supporters a 10% discount on purchases of two or more books when you enter this code on the purchase page: BWB4NLT. Your purchases could also help us to win a further grant of £1,000 from Better World Books. The retailer collects and sells a wide range of books to generate funds for literacy causes such as ours, with the UK site offering over a million new and used titles, as well as free delivery.
Get shopping!
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Two new appointments for our Talk To Your Baby campaign
We are pleased to announce the appointment of Clare Bolton and Cathy Hamer as the new managers of our Talk To Your Baby campaign. Talk To Your Baby encourages parents and carers to talk more to their children from birth to three years. We are thrilled to have Clare and Cathy on board to carry on the work of the previous manager, Liz Attenborough, who first developed the campaign in 2003.
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Fantastic funding news for book gifting project
Thanks to the generous support of UBS we will be able to run our book gifting project in Sure Start children’s centres across the UK. We will work with five local authorities to reach a further 1,044 children this year. We can also expand our work in Scotland to reach a further 300 children, thanks to a generous grant from The Robertson Trust, and continue working in areas of deprivation to reach another 180 children, thanks to the support of Reed Elsevier. Each child we reach will be able to choose three free new books at a series of events that celebrate the fun of reading.
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Who's your favourite Christmas character?
It’s time to get into the Christmas spirit! We think that Christmas-themed books are a great way to feel festive and we would like to know what storybook character you relate to most at Christmas. Are you a fun-loving and giving Santa, or do you moan and groan like Scrooge? Vote now
Books are always a popular Christmas gift, so we would also like to know who do you buy books for at Christmas?
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Other news in brief
Department for Education releases schools white paper
Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove revealed plans to reform the curriculum, focus on teacher training and improve discipline in schools across England with the release of the new schools white paper.
Books still key to libraries, survey reveals
Books remain the main reason why most people use libraries, according to a new research study published by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council.
New reading test for six-year-olds announced
Government Ministers gave more details of plans to bring in reading tests for six-year-olds in England.
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Resources, events and inspiration |
Interview with Jo Humphreys-Davies, Walker Books
Jo Humphreys-Davies is the Trade Marketing Manager at Walker Books. Walker Books has been working with the National Literacy Trust for many years, recently raising an incredible £30,000 in one year for us to celebrate the company’s 30th birthday. Jo has been heading up the fundraising committee and tells us some more about how they have set about achieving their target and why the company as a whole is passionate about literacy. Read the interview
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Children's author Tom Palmer has written a free story for teachers to download and read to their classes. Tying into the Ashes test cricket series currently being played between England and Australia, The Case of the Missing Trophy is available as a free download. Why not read it with your class and turn it into a literacy exercise by asking your pupils who they think stole the Ashes Trophy, and how they did it?
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School literacy reports to be released
Schools that took part in our survey to explore young people’s attitudes towards literacy can expect to receive their school-specific reports over the next few weeks. A series of reports, combining the findings and, crucially, examining the relationship between attitudes and attainment, will be released in the spring. Our thanks go to all the schools who took part in our the first of our annual surveys. Your contribution will help inform how we work in the future to improve literacy in the UK through our work with schools.
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Success story |
Improving support for literacy in local areas
We have worked with local authorities to improve literacy levels for over 16 years. Niki Lewis, Service Director for Communities, Libraries, Heritage and Arts at Wiltshire Council has been working with us closely over the past few years. She says:
“Working with the National Literacy Trust is helping us to target low literacy and build resilience in our most deprived wards. Currently we are looking at innovative ways that midwives and housing staff in these areas can encourage parents and carers to improve their skills and take an active role in developing the communication skills of their babies and young children.”
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Support our work |
Give the gift of reading this Christmas, with exclusive Gruffalo artwork
Book-lovers everywhere appreciate the pleasure and opportunities that reading has brought them. This Christmas you could give a child from a disadvantaged community a book of their own for the very first time. Buy the gift of reading for yourself or the book-lover in your life and receive a stunning Christmas card with an exclusive Gruffalo drawing by illustrator Axel Scheffler.
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