HOMEBUILDER’S DONATION HELPS BERKSHIRE CHARITY’S BENEFICIARIES START A NEW CHAPTER

David Wilson Homes has made a £1,500 contribution to Read Easy West Berkshire to support its services to help adults develop their reading skills and boost social mobility.

The Hungerford-based developer’s Community Fund donation has enabled the charity, which launched in January 2023, to push forward with helping approximately 5,000 adults in West Berkshire learn how to read.

According to the National Literacy Trust, 16.4% of adults in England, or 7.1 million people, can be described as having ‘very poor literacy skills’. Read Easy works hard to combat this in order to give personal benefit and confidence in job seeking, and ensure its beneficiaries can help with their children’s learning and development.

Brian Newman, Treasurer at Read Easy West Berkshire, said: “We were thrilled and really excited to hear about David Wilson Homes’ generous donation, and we offer our heartfelt thanks.

“The contribution will enable us to help more people and ensure their experience is positive.

“David Wilson Homes is not only fulfilling the need for new homes in West Berkshire, but supporting the community in which it works in a tremendous way through the Community Fund scheme.”

Following the donation, a cheque presentation took place at David Wilson Homes’ Donnington Heights in Newbury, where Brian Newman, Mark Ingvorsen and Roger Allison from Read Easy met with Olivia Horsey, Sales Adviser.

Each year, the wider Read Easy charity teaches roughly 960 adults to read through its 90 regional groups. The adults benefiting from the charity’s work may be employed or unemployed, they may have difficulties, no qualifications or low skill levels.

A successful pupil under the guidance of the charity said: “I could not read to my children, but now I can read to my grandchildren.”

Those supported by Read Easy West Berkshire have two sessions per week with their coaches using the training aid ‘Turning Pages’. Each session is completely free to the reader in strict confidence, and often take place in private areas in public places, such as libraries.

The donation from David Wilson Homes was made via its Barratt Developments Plc Charitable Foundation, which is designed to support national and local charities, large and small, to leave a legacy in the communities in which the housebuilder operates.

Campbell Gregg, Managing Director at David Wilson Homes Southern, said: “The ability to read is an important skill to have, and the excellent work of Read Easy West Berkshire opens the door to a wide range of opportunities for its beneficiaries.

“As a leading housebuilder, we strive to support the communities in which we build as part of our social mobility objectives, and we’re sure our Community Fund donation will go a long way to support the charity’s projects in the region.”

The current committee at Read Easy West Berkshire consists of seven volunteers. There are eight trained coaches within the charity’s team and, at £56 per training course and £162 per reader for manuals and reading books, it aims to recruit 22 coaches each year.

Read Easy West Berkshire needs to raise funds for its projects annually and the contribution from David Wilson Homes has helped the charity to meet its main objective for 2023.