READING Borough Council has commended the young volunteers who helped make this year’s Summer Reading Challenge a success.
More than 30 young people volunteered with the Reading Library service, racking up more than 560 hours of support for the scheme.
On Tuesday, October 11, Cllr Adele Barnett-Ward, Reading’s lead councillor for leisure and culture, thanked a group of young volunteers at a special presentation ceremony in Reading Central Library.
Volunteers between 14-18 were recruited to lend their support by encouraging younger children to read with crafts and activities.
The Summer Reading Challenge sees younger children incentivised to borrow and read at least six books as well as events for them to attend and take part in.
It aims to get more children reading over the summer period when children’s literacy skills traditionally dip.
Aarushi, aged 16, volunteered at Central Library, and said: “I really enjoyed interacting with different people, learning about their experiences, and also seeing the joy the children got when they finished their books.
“To me it was really insightful, to be able to communicate with so many of the people that I interacted with – I loved it.
“Seeing the excitement they had about the books they read was really special.”
She said that her own love of reading was one of the things that made her want to volunteer.
“I love legal thrillers, and legal is kind of what I want to pursue at university, and I’ve always been the kind of person who gets told off reading at the dinner table.
“Everyone in my family loves reading, and I think that’s where I get it from, so I would definitely want my younger brother and kids his age to share in that.”
Eve, aged 18, another of the scheme’s volunteers, said: “We sat down with kids who are interested in reading and listened to them talking about the books that they love and what they’re reading.
“It was just a really nice experience for us, and then for us to be able to learn from them.
“I know that reading is kind of going out of fashion, in terms of technology, but it’s so important for them academically.
“You can tell they really do love just having someone to listen to them.
“The progress they made and the enthusiasm they had about reading was really what stuck out to me.”
Cllr Barnett-Ward said: “I’m delighted this year’s science and innovation-themed Summer Reading Challenge was another great success, providing a good incentive to get children into their local library and keep their reading up over the summer holiday.
“We are very grateful to all our fabulous young volunteers, who contributed to the success of the reading challenge.
She said that the 568 hours of volunteer hours over the course of the summer was “the most the library service has ever had.
“Every one of them has made an extremely valuable contribution to the Summer Reading Challenge and has helped encourage local children to develop a love of reading, which is so important.
“I am delighted to be able to thank some of them individually and give them the recognition they deserve for their hard work this summer.
“They will have each gained some great experience through this project which will be valuable to them in the future and might inspire them to pursue a career in the library service.”
