Creatingnewopportunitiesfordisadvantagedchildrenwhofindreadingastruggle.doc

Creating new opportunities for disadvantaged children who find reading a struggle

Volunteer Reading Help (VRH) is a national charity that helps disadvantaged children develop a love of reading and learning. We recruit and train volunteers to work with children aged 6-11 who find reading a challenge and may need extra support and mentoring. Without individual support children can fall behind their peers and lack confidence and self esteem. Many may find it difficult to interact socially with adults. In later years they may drift into offending behavior. Our trained network of reading helpers support the same children week in, week out, giving each an hour of quality, one to one time. They read, they play, they talk. With the support of VRH a new chapter in their life is opened, one which will provide them with opportunities that may otherwise be denied. Our work takes place in schools but outside the classroom. We also work in libraries and with looked after children. We are constantly exploring a range of new settings in which to deliver our services and reach more needy children.
Our work benefits our volunteers too. Some have been out of work for long periods of time and may lack the confidence to seek paid employment. Many find their experience of volunteering helps them to develop their skills and confidence. Many go on to find employment, for example, as classroom assistants. Our volunteers are all ages and come from a variety of backgrounds and developing a diverse volunteer workforce is one of our key aims.