What does volunteering involve?
How to volunteer

What does volunteering involve?
Many schools are now involved in schemes whereby adults from the local community assist with pupils' reading on a one-to-one basis, outside of the usual classroom environment. Volunteers usually undergo a short period of training before committing to spending a set amount of time per week (usually an hour) with a child, for at least a term. Volunteers are not expected to take the place of a teacher but are there to give one-to-one encouragement to children, helping them to relax, gain confidence and enjoy their reading. Volunteers from business can also function as role models to children who are unfamiliar with the world of work. 

How to volunteer?

Individuals
It is best not to approach a school directly, but to contact organisations that are in contact with schools that wish to recruit volunteers. The main national organisation is Volunteer Reading Help - www.vrh.org.uk - and the best way to find out about volunteering with children is through Reading Volunteers, a partnership between TimeBank and Volunteer Reading Help. Visit www.timebank.org.uk/volunteer/cmp_reading_volunteers.php or call the TimeBank information line on 0845 601 4008.

Community Service Volunteers (CSV) - www.csv.org.uk - also actively recruits reading mentors as part of its Make a Difference Day campaign. There are also a couple of local organisations working with primary school children, for example Learning Partnerships in Leeds and Literacy Volunteers in Nottinghamshire. For more information visit the organisations section.

Companies
The Right to Read campaign is a national TimeBank partnership with Business in the Community. It is aimed at encouraging corporate vounteers to sign up and be matched to local schemes. Visit www.timebank.org.uk/righttoread. For more on setting up a scheme for your employees or colleagues, visit the business section of our site.

For those in areas not covered by these initiatives and without a branch of Volunteer Reading Help, a local volunteer centre may be able to help. Visit www.volunteering.org.uk or www.doit.org.uk to find your local centre. As a last resort, a direct approach to a local primary school could be made (primary schools are generally more receptive to volunteers than secondary).