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Dec 2020

Last Updated: 11/12/2020

Education

Nidderdale pupils donate books to boost children's literacy

by Vicky Carr

| 12 Dec, 2020

Belmont Grosvenor School has donated more than 500 books to Bradford Stories, the campaign from the National Literacy Trust and Bradford Council which aims to improve literacy levels in the city by promoting reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Pupils from a Nidderdale school are hoping to spread Christmas cheer and the joy of reading with children across Yorkshire.

Belmont Grosvenor School has donated more than 500 books to Bradford Stories, the campaign from the National Literacy Trust and Bradford Council which aims to improve literacy levels in the city by promoting reading, writing, speaking and listening.

The books, ranging from babies’ first picture books to simple readers, topic books and young teenage novels, will be gifted to children across the Bradford area, many of whom don’t own a single book.

Imran Hafeez, manager of Bradford Stories, said he was delighted to receive the donation of books – and pledged to deliver them to families across the city who need them most. He added:

“Last Christmas, before the pandemic, we found that more than 5,000 children in Bradford don’t own a single book and our fear is that with the closures of libraries and lockdown restrictions, this number will have increased.

“We are continuing to reach out into our communities through partners and volunteer Literacy Champions with the gift of books and we are aiming to distribute over 10,000 by Christmas this year. This kind donation from Belmont Grosvenor School allows us to fulfil this task during a very difficult time.

“We hope to bring the joy of reading to many children who otherwise wouldn’t have a book."

This week, staff from the independent school, based in Birstwith, travelled to Bradford to deliver the boxfuls of books to the Bradford Stories storeroom in the city.

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Belmont Grosvenor School’s book donation comes as Premier League footballer Marcus Rashford announced the launch of a national book club to promote literacy and reading. His aim is to give away thousands of paperbacks and hardbacks to children from vulnerable and disadvantaged backgrounds.

Jo Henderson, who runs the nursery at Belmont Grosvenor School, said:

“All our children here at Belmont Grosvenor School and Magic Tree Nursery are lucky enough to have access to books, and to benefit from the joy and escapism that reading, and being read to, brings.

“We hope that by donating some of our school’s books to Bradford Stories we can help, in some small way, improve the lives of children and families from disadvantaged backgrounds. We know the books will be distributed to those who need them most and we hope that brings some happiness over the festive season."

Bradford Stories operates a number of other community-based projects to tackle low-literacy levels in some of the city’s most disadvantaged wards. These include the Bradford Schools Literacy Project, working with 53 schools across the city to improve literacy, and running a team of Literacy Champion volunteers who support and inspire their local communities to engage with reading and writing.

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Nidderdale pupils donate books to boost children's literacy

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