This week has drawn to a close an emotional period for many; with an overwhelming amount of very moving tributes being shared and world leaders coming to pay their respects as bid farewell to Queen Elizabeth one last time. It was brilliant to see so many of the brilliant projects that the Queen supported being highlighted and so many people turning out to offer their condolences to the Royal Family. We now look to our new King, Charles III, and his wife Camilla, Queen Consort, to build upon Queen Elizabeth’s legacy.
One cause that the new Queen Consort previously expressed broad support for in the past is children’s literacy. While Duchess of Cornwall she was the patron of several organisations which support and promote literacy such as the National Literacy Trust and the Book Trust and was a judge on BBC Radio 2's 500 Words creative writing competition that helped encourage young people to learn to enjoy writing. All of the evidence shows that introducing children to books at a young age can have a huge impact on their language development and gives them the best start in life.
Throughout the past few years, children have been put under immense pressure. The decision to close schools during the pandemic did not just have the obvious effects around disruption to exams and teaching. It is much more profound than that. Children in both primary schools and secondary have been separated from friends. Children’s birthday parties couldn’t happen as they normally would and should. School sports events did not go forward. We, humans, are social creatures. Friendships and the company of others are important. Forming those bonds and friendships is a crucial part of growing up, whether it is in the formative early years as children start their first years as infants at primary school, or whether it is in those tricky teenage years as young people wrestle with all the insecurities and concerns that accompany that stage of life.
Given the impact that the last year has had on many young people in terms of welfare and their education, the Government has made every effort to ensure those who have fallen behind are able to catch up. That is why I am delighted to see a new project being launched by the National Literacy Trust in Camborne and Redruth which aims to give parents the support and advice they need to help their children get off to a great start.
The project is called Chat, Play, Read, and offers an opportunity to come along and meet others who want the best for the next generation in Camborne Redruth and learn what you can do to help.
Tackling deprivation in our communities can only be achieved with a joint and coordinated approach. This project offers our families the support to create a strong home learning environment for their children by chatting, playing, and reading every day. This is vital because literacy is the lowest often where deprivation is highest. What happens at home in the early years of a child's life is not only the key to their success in education but their success in life. A parent's positive influence at this stage can make a lifetime of difference, and it doesn't cost them any money. The project will be launched at 15:30 in Camborne on Friday 23rd, more details about how to get involved can be found here: https://tinyurl.com/4rjkt8s9.
