Free books for youngsters as part of literacy scheme

Children from two Ealing schools have taken part in an event to encourage them to develop a love of reading.

It was part of the National Literacy Trust’s Young Readers Programme, supported by the Ealing Broadway Shopping Centre and several of its retailers including Waterstones and Tesco, aimed at improving the literacy levels of children aged 11 and under.

Three fun and engaging literacy-focused sessions were attended by pupils from Hathaway Primary School and Grange Primary School in Ealing. The final event saw the children visit Ealing Broadway Shopping Centre where they toured three different locations to build on their learning in a leisure environment, before choosing the last of three free books to take home to keep.

Waterstones made up one of the three locations, where a professional storyteller brought stories to life with an enthralling interactive performance, aimed at showing children how reading can help them to explore new and fantastic worlds and bring their imaginations alive.

Other retailers were also involved, including Tesco, which gave an education tour of the store including teaching the children the importance of nutrition and a fruit-tasting session. As part of the programme, the Ealing Central Library also welcomed the children to explore their facilities and learn about library etiquette and the benefits of owning a library card.

The Young Readers Programme, which is designed to encourage reading for enjoyment, is being supported across the country by funding worth £200,000 from owner of Ealing Broadway Shopping Centre, British Land.  Nationally, one in five children leave primary school unable to read properly, while children who read daily outside class are five times more likely to read above the expected level for their age compared with pupils who never read outside class.

Karen Kondo, Assistant Headteacher at Grange Primary School, “This is a truly amazing project, we are so lucky to be a part of it. Developing a love of reading is one of the greatest gifts a child can receive. Our children are absolutely thrilled to choose and receive the books and I hope that this will have an impact on them for years to come.”

Andrew Rollings, Centre Director at Ealing Broadway Shopping Centre, said: “We were pleased to welcome children from Hathaway and Grange Primary Schools to the centre for the final National Literacy Trust reading session, as we look to do our bit to address the important issue of young people’s literacy, and help prevent low literacy from putting them at a disadvantage. It was great to see the children having so much fun during the storytelling activities and learning about reading for enjoyment.

“In addition to our direct work with the schools involved, we’re also pleased to be offering a host of online resources for parents to access via our website at http://www.ealingbroadwayshopping.co.uk/neighbourhood/top-tips-words-life, underlining our commitment to improving skills across the board.”

8th July 2015