CHARITY
Kent Charity Profile :
BEANSTALK
GOOD LEVELS OF LITERACY IN SCHOOL CHILDREN IS IMPORTANT FOR SO MANY REASONS – IT BUILDS CONFIDENCE , IT HELPS THEM WITH THEIR FRIENDSHIPS , AND OF COURSE , NOT BEING LITERATE WILL PUT THEM AT A GREAT DISADVANTAGE WHEN IT COMES TO THE WORLD OF WORK . THIS MONTH , insideKENT ’ s LISAMARIE LAMB SPOKE TO KENT LITERACY CHARITY BEANSTALK ’ S CEO GINNY LUNN .
What is it that Beanstalk does ?
We ’ re a charity that recruits , trains and supports volunteers to provide one-to-one support to children in primary schools who struggle with their reading ability and confidence . Together they ’ ll read books , have a chat , and play educational games . It sounds simple but it ’ s really effective in helping to transform the education of the children we work with and it gives them the confidence to thrive in and out of the classroom .
Why is a charity like Beanstalk needed ?
It often surprises people when you tell them this , but we really are facing a literacy crisis in England , and sadly it ’ s particularly heightened in Kent and Medway .
In the last school year ( 2015-16 ), over 31 % of children left primary school in Kent and Medway unable to read to the required level .
This means that – on average – 10 children in every class are leaving their primary education without the basic skills to succeed in the next stage of their lives .
We urgently need to change this as it ’ s putting far too many children at risk of the long-term consequences of low-literacy . The problems it can cause are more than not being able to read the latest bestseller . It ’ s about ensuring that they are able to be engaged and thrive in school , gain consistent full-time employment as adults , and pass on a love of reading to their own children in the future .
What is the charity ’ s history ?
We first started over 40 years ago , all the way back in 1973 when our founder – Susan Belgrave MBE – saw that too many children in her area were leaving school without being able to read well . She decided to take action and start Volunteer Reading Help , as Beanstalk used to be known . Over the last 40 plus years we ’ ve managed to grow and grow , and in 2012 we became known as Beanstalk in time for our 40th anniversary . From what started as seven volunteer reading helpers working in two schools , we now work across the country and support over 11,000 children in 1,400 schools .
We launched our work in Kent and Medway 25 years ago and we ’ re currently supporting over 1,500 children in the area , but we ’ d love to be able to help even more children .
How do you raise money ?
Our partner schools make a small contribution towards our service , which is subsidised by our fundraising team . We have the support of businesses , charitable foundations , and people across the country who really help make our work possible . We ’ ve actually just launched our new International Challenge which is a
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