Having poor literacy skills, coupled with low parental expectations and poor self-esteem, can have a profound effect on educational life chances, employability and social cohesion. Those from groups often considered to be at risk of social exclusion may suffer from a double disadvantage if they also have low literacy skills.

Children suffer from the social exclusion of their parents: the difference in achievement can be seen in children as young as 22 months, and the gap gets wider the older they get. However, we also know that involvement in learning has an influence on the level of individual resilience to setbacks and stress, on feelings of wellbeing and the extent to which people feel in control of their lives.

Poor literacy is the tip of the iceberg. We need to understand the less-visible factors underneath and how the patterns of influence on individual lives can be harnessed to raise literacy achievement for all.

This section contains information on approaches to working with particular groups. It has developed from the Literacy and Social Inclusion Project, a Basic Skills Agency national support project delivered by the National Literacy Trust in 2002-2005. For a more detailed look at the issues, see Every which way we can: A Literacy and Social Inclusion Position Paper