Let Teachers SHINE winner 2025: Nicola Crompton – Reading Champions
A new project in Carlisle aims to train social workers to use reading during home visits to help young children build their confidence and improve literacy skills.
Based at Cumberland Virtual School, the ‘Reading Champions’ project has secured a £25,000 Let Teachers SHINE award to support reading for pleasure amongst children experiencing vulnerability by training social workers to model reading to their families.
“We know for so many children who’ve experienced trauma or neglect that home reading can be difficult,” explained Nicola Crompton, project author and lead.
In Cumberland, just 41% of children in need reached expected standards by Year 6, compared with 70.9% amongst their peers.
“Early intervention is crucial,” added Nicola. The latest Book Trust research explains, “Children who are read to frequently at age five are over half a school year ahead in reading performance at age 15, compared to those who are read to infrequently or not read to at all.”
“I believe we can sometimes underestimate the challenges parents face when reading to and hearing their child read,” explained Nicola, adding: “Social workers can play a pivotal role in breaking down the barriers that prevent reading from occurring at home.”
The project aims to equip social workers to be ‘Reading Champions’ by providing them with resources and training to model quality shared reading to parents.
“Fortnightly social worker visits to the home will involve reading to and hearing a child read, which will scaffold support for parents,” said Nicola. “With the right support, I believe that families can significantly impact a child’s attainment and, crucially, their attitude toward learning.”
Through reading and storytelling activities, social workers will also be able to build trust and nurture a good relationship with the families they support.
“As educators, we know that enjoyable shared reading experiences strengthen emotional bonds and boost reading attainment,” explained Nicola.
Initial signs from a pilot summer holiday intervention are positive. “The feedback from social workers was positive at an early stage,” said Nicola.
“One social worker expressed surprise at how quickly she had developed a bond with a child on her first visit using this approach, while another shared that it inspired a parent to set up a reading den for their child.”
In addition to SHINE, the project is also being backed by University of Manchester, and The Dollywood Foundation who are donating specially selected texts for social workers to use and share with families during their visits.
“With SHINE’s funding, the support from Manchester University and the generous support of The Dollywood Foundation, we can unpick challenges and offer tailored support,” said Nicola.
On receiving the award, Nicola said: “I cannot tell you how thrilled I was to hear that my application was successful. With SHINE’s help we can reach more families even quicker to overcome these barriers, foster a love for reading, and improve children’s reading attainment.”