Why Lexonik Has Signed The National Literacy Trust's Business Pledge

Today, here at Lexonik, we’re joining forces with 100 other businesses and we’re saying, loudly, proudly: ‘No more to this. There’s a Literacy Crisis…and it needs tackling’.

We are one of the committed signatories of the National Literacy Trust’s Vision for Literacy Business Pledge, which is unveiled today, supported by KPMG.

You’ll have heard us repeat time and again that ‘No-one should be limited because they can’t read’, and this significant pledge aligns with that ethos.

It has been born out of the desire to help all businesses, communities, families and educators empower our children and young people, by equipping them with the vital literacy skills they need to succeed in life.

Headquartered in the north east, we know all too well what happens when communities and individuals face deprivation or disadvantage, and literacy plays into this more than you can possibly imagine.

This is why, throughout the coming year, we plan to collaborate within our employee family at Lexonik, and with our customers, suppliers and supporters.

We’re going to be continuously reflecting on what more we as a company can do to enable improvement in today’s literacy story in the UK.

Did you know…

• Nine children in every reception classroom are already falling behind. Many will never catch up if we don’t act now.
• Every September, more than 185,000 five-year-olds start primary school without essential communication, literacy, and language skills, costing our economy £830 million every year. This is a crisis we can’t afford to ignore.
• Children’s enjoyment of reading has hit crisis point. Reading for pleasure leads to better academic and wellbeing outcomes for children but, last year, the National Literacy Trust reported that less than half of children and young people read for pleasure in their spare time – the lowest since their records began in 2005. We must act now to help children discover a love of reading than can transform their life chances.
• Many children are facing barriers to accessing books, with 1 in 7 state primary schools in the UK not having a library, rising to 1 in 4 in disadvantaged communities. This means that 750,000 children are missing out on the many benefits of reading – from better results at school to improved wellbeing.
• And we’re already feeling the impact. 7 in 10 employers are concerned about young people’s literacy and numeracy skills when entering the workplace. Last year, a third of young people left school without at least a grade 4/C in GCSE English, presenting a significant barrier to employment.
  

So today, we appeal to you to be part of our Pledge Commitment.

If you mourn for the memory of when children and parents queued around the block for the latest Harry Potter book, and you want to see more young people reading for pleasure, step forward and help us do that.

We’ll be sharing our updates regularly through our various communication channels, but in the meantime, you can always drop a message to our team and let us know how you feel you’d like to offer support of any means.

If you’re keen to see for yourself, more about the Pledge and its formal launch, do please go to: https://literacytrust.org.uk/policy-and-campaigns/businesspledge/

Thank you!
Let’s change lives together.