MP’s Get Witham Reading campaign celebrates its tenth anniversary

Priti Patel, the MP for Witham has launched her annual school literacy campaign ‘Get Witham Reading 2022’. The campaign was held for the first time in 2012, when children’s literacy levels in Witham fell below the national average. At the time, 1 in 6 pupils were leaving school without achieving the literacy level of an 11 year old. Get Witham Reading 2022, which takes place on Friday 8th July 2022, marks the tenth anniversary of the launch of that first campaign.

The theme for this year’s Get Witham Reading (GWR) will be Her Majesty, the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations and the schools taking part will base their reading activities around it. GWR will also be linked this year with the complementary Essex Year of Reading 2022, the programme which seeks to ensure that every child in Essex leaves school with the ability to read at their own age level or better.

GWR actively promotes reading among children and young people whilst improving their literacy and other academic skills. It builds upon the work local schools are doing to improve literacy skills in the constituency, to celebrate pupils’ reading achievements, and to promote the many joys and benefits of reading.

Commenting on this year’s campaign, Priti said: “This fun and engaging initiative has consistently given children in school a memorable experience proving that reading is not only essential to achievement and success, but that it is very entertaining too.’

“Over the past 10 years, I have thoroughly enjoyed working closely with so many schools across my constituency and learning more about the outstanding work they do to promote and enhance reading and literacy skills among children and young people. I am keen to use this year’s event to celebrate reading achievements, enhance literacy skills and inspire young people to enjoy reading for pleasure through a range of interactive reading activities.

“It is very exciting that Get Witham Reading’s 10th anniversary event will be bringing together schools and the Essex Year of Reading 2022 programme to inspire even more children and young people in my constituency, and across the county of Essex, to develop a lifelong love of reading.’

So far, 12 schools have signed up to take part in Get Witham Reading 2022 and Priti will visit many of them at the end of the campaign. They are:

• Powers Hall Academy
• Templars Academy
• Silver End Academy
• Chipping Hill Primary School
• Feering CofE Primary School
• Terling CofE Primary School
• Hatfield Peverel Infant School
• Tiptree Heath Primary School
• Lakelands Primary School
• Elm Hall Primary School
• Baynards Primary School
• Rivenhall Primary School

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