GRAHAM is providing funding and volunteers for online reading programme, TutorMate, which supports over 2,000 struggling young readers in primary schools in Bradford, Doncaster, Leeds, London, Middlesbrough, Peterborough, East Sussex and Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Twenty GRAHAM colleagues will read remotely for 30 minutes a week over the TutorMate platform with their matched children, who are attending schools in Middlesbrough and London, over the course of the current academic year.

TutorMate is an online platform that enables corporate volunteers to pair with children in need of reading support, and has been proven to improve the literacy outcomes and reading enjoyment of young children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Even before Covid a shocking 36% of 11-year-olds from disadvantaged backgrounds in England left primary school unable to read English well, leaving them a full nine months behind their peers. Repeated international research is clear that children who don’t read well by the end of primary school are those who struggle to fulfil their potential in life.

Emma Bell, Executive Director, Innovations for Learning, said:

“We are delighted that GRAHAM has agreed to support us this year. The need for TutorMate is greater than ever as the cost of living pressures on families compound the problems of the pandemic. Those who struggle with reading are falling even further behind and will benefit enormously from this additional reading practice with their own personal 1:1 reading volunteer.”

Stephen Hughes, Social Impact Business Partner at GRAHAM, said:

"Supporting the communities where we work is one of the key themes of our CSR strategy. Our approach to ‘Delivering Lasting Impact’ includes our volunteering policy which allows all staff two days of paid volunteering time per annum. We are delighted to partner with Innovations for Learning to bring this fabulous volunteering opportunity to our staff. The TutorMate reading scheme will enable our employee volunteers to donate their time to transform a child’s life chances by providing them with vital reading practice. Now more than ever, the disruption to schooling caused by the pandemic has been devastating for many young children, who have fallen even further behind with their reading so this service will support those young children who need it most."

For more information about IfL/TutorMate visit https://www.innovationsforlear...