Success stories

What have we achieved so far?

Since our foundation in 1993, literacy levels have increased by 24%, with 80% of 11-year-olds reaching the stage expected for their age group in 2009, compared with only 56% in 1995. Yet, as demands on literacy skills are rapidly increasing, there is still much to do to reach those people who are in most need of literacy support.

• 31Aug2011
  Our reading project reaches over 8000 children in disadvantaged communities

  Our Young Readers Programme helps children and young people in areas of disadvantage to acquire the skills they need to develop as a reader. This year we've reached over 8000 children.

• 26Jul2011
  A Big Society approach to literacy: involving community volunteers in Rochdale

  Rochdale has developed a community literacy volunteering programme - Literacy Champions - which is making a real difference to outcomes for people and communities.

• 13Jul2011
  A day of conversation: promoting communication in Sheffield

  Sheffield City Council held a Day of Communication for over 1000 children to promote communication and conversation. The event was also used to raise awareness of the impact of language and literacy with new partners as part of Sheffield's city-wide liter

• 30Jun2011
  Words for Work at Brighton Aldridge Community Academy

  A volunteer reports an emotional conclusion to a challenging Words for Work journey at Brighton Aldridge Community Academy (BACA)

• 14Jun2011
  Wiltshire council reaching the "hard to reach" through local partnerships

  Wiltshire council worked with the National Literacy Trust to plan a new approach to literacy which involved partners across their communities.

• 28Mar2011
  Helping young carers to discover reading for pleasure

  Read more about how our Young Readers Programme works with young carers, whose responsibilities often threaten their education and the impact we had one little girl.

• 28Feb2011
  Encouraging reading in the holidays

  51,000 children said they would read more because of our summer promotion

• 24Feb2011
  Reading project encourages library membership

  Over the past few years we have piloted a new way of working through libraries in order to encourage more disadvantaged children and young people to read for pleasure.

• 14Feb2011
  Successful pilot of family literacy workshops

  In four locations across the UK groups of 10 parent-child pairs attended workshops on family literacy where they learnt how to encourage reading for pleasure and find appropriate books for their children.

• 01Feb2011
  Involving fathers with their sons' literacy

  We changed the attitudes of both fathers and their sons towards reading.