Children made an average of nine months’ progress in reading age after 12 weeks on SHINE early literacy programme

A SHINE early literacy programme developed by dedicated primary school teacher Rachel Arafa is helping disadvantaged children make rapid gains in reading while strengthening schools’ capacity to deliver high-quality literacy teaching.

Ready, Let’s Read and Write (RLRW) combines targeted pupil intervention with staff coaching and parental engagement to improve early literacy outcomes for children at risk of falling behind.

Built around a three-tier model of support, the programme provides structured phonics and reading intervention for pupils, professional development for teachers and teaching assistants, and resources to help parents support reading at home.

During the latest phase of delivery, schools reported accelerated reading progress, increased confidence among pupils and staff, and stronger early literacy practice across participating settings.

Impact highlights

• Children made an average of nine months’ progress in reading age following a 10–12 week intervention.
• Some pupils made gains of up to 22 months in reading age.
• More than 80% of children demonstrated measurable progress across early literacy, including phonics, decoding, reading fluency, speech and language, early writing, confidence, independence and classroom participation.
• 40 children working below age-related expectations achieved the EYFS Literacy Early Learning Goal, enabling them to access the Year 1 phonics curriculum with greater confidence.
• Staff reported increased confidence in phonics teaching, diagnostic assessment and targeted literacy intervention.
• Schools developed a stronger understanding of early literacy development and improved identification of barriers to learning.

Rachel developed Ready, Let’s Read and Write after recognising the need for an early intervention model that not only supports children who are struggling to read, but also builds lasting expertise within schools.

Rather than focusing solely on pupils, the programme works on three levels. Alongside intensive early literacy intervention, teachers and teaching assistants receive coaching, modelling and mentoring to embed evidence-informed practice, while a third strand aims to strengthen support for reading at home through parents and carers.

Across the 8 participating schools, children made an average of nine months’ progress in reading age over just 10 to 12 weeks of intervention, with some making gains of up to 22 months*.

More than 80% of participating pupils made measurable progress across a range of early literacy indicators, including phonics knowledge, decoding, reading fluency, speech and language development, early writing, confidence, independence and classroom participation.

For some children, the improvements were especially significant. Pupils who had previously been working below age-related expectations went on to achieve the EYFS Literacy Early Learning Goal, allowing them to access the Year 1 phonics curriculum with increased confidence.

Teachers and teaching assistants reported greater confidence in delivering phonics, carrying out diagnostic assessment and providing targeted literacy intervention. Schools also reported a stronger understanding of early literacy development and improved identification of barriers affecting children’s progress.

Qualitative feedback consistently highlighted improvements not only in literacy outcomes but also in pupils’ confidence, engagement and participation in learning. Practitioners also reported greater independence and resilience among children receiving support.

In some cases, schools reported that pupils previously identified for additional SEND support required less targeted intervention following participation in the programme, suggesting that stronger early literacy foundations were helping children access classroom learning more successfully.

Looking ahead

The next phase of Ready, Let’s Read and Write will build on these foundations by consolidating delivery in existing schools while expanding selectively into new settings that demonstrate readiness to implement the programme with fidelity.

Future development will focus on strengthening Tier 1 pupil intervention and Tier 2 staff development, further developing parental engagement, refining SEND adaptations and improving impact evaluation systems to support sustainable growth.

Although data has been collected consistently, the current system for entering and analysing it could be more efficient and has focused mainly on literacy outcomes, such as oral language and reading age.

The next stage will involve developing a more efficient data system to streamline data entry and analysis and automate reporting, producing clearer, more useful impact reports for funders, schools and partners. The programme will also broaden the range of outcomes measured and plans to work with a university research partner on ongoing independent evaluation of its impact on children’s agency, confidence and sense of themselves as learners.

*The YARC Early Reading Assessment (GL Assessment) was used to assess 52 children.