CNA yuo rdae tsih?

No? Well this is what a sentence looks like to thousands of children across the North of England.

In the last school year, more than 7,500 children left primary school in Yorkshire and the Humber unable to read to the required level, which can have severe consequences on a child's future.

According to children's literacy charity Beanstalk, men and women with poor reading skills are less likely to be in full-time employment by the age of 30, and a quarter of all young offenders have a reading level below that of a seven-year-old. One in five adults don’t have the reading skills to find a plumber in the Yellow Pages.

For more than 40 years Beanstalk has provided trained reading helpers to work in schools, enabling children across the country to leave school confident and able readers.

Each Beanstalk reading helper supports three children and sees each child on a one-to-one basis for two 30-minute sessions a week, during term-time, over three terms. Together, they read, play and talk and with that valuable support, the children's approach to learning and enjoying reading is transformed.

According to Beanstalk figures obtained from SATS results, in the academic year of 2014-2015 16per cent of Year 6 pupils in Bradford left school without meeting the national required level. That’s more than 1,100 children.

Beanstalk is part of the Read On.Get On. campaign, aiming to get all children reading to the required level by age of 11 by 2025.

Beanstalk volunteers support more than 120 children in the Bradford district.

“Literacy development depends largely on access to books, but not all children have books at home," says volunteer support worker Helen Wright.

Reading helpers don’t require qualifications or teaching experience. They attend a training programme to learn the skills to run sessions in schools.

"Our Trained Reading Helpers volunteer twice a week supporting three children on a one-to-one basis," says Helen. "It is this one-to-one support that really differentiates us and leads to the great results we get. Children who have had Beanstalk support not only experience a significant improvement in their reading, but also their confidence and self- esteem. Having a special adult who comes into school twice a week just for them, really does have a hugely positive impact.

Beanstalk has trained reading helpers volunteering in 34 Bradford primary schools. "We cover all areas of Bradford," says Helen. We currently have 55 volunteers but are looking for many more. We have a target of 80 to reach by September.

“We need people who are patient and encouraging, good listeners, are able to work at a child’s pace and have the confidence to work with a range of ages, from five to 11. Some volunteers are parents, others volunteer around work commitments."

Reading helpers spend time listening to children read, reading to and with them, playing games and chatting. The 30-minute sessions are shaped around each child’s needs and abilities. Beanstalk provide a box of books and activities for helpers to use in their sessions. The volunteers are supported and visited in school and are encouraged to attend frequent events with other volunteers so they can share their experiences and build knowledge and ideas.

"We're looking for volunteers from different backgrounds who enjoy reading themselves and have the patience and enthusiasm to share their own love of reading with children," says Helen. "We want children to enjoy reading , not just see it as an obstacle. A minimum commitment of 12 months in school is required, we hope our volunteers will stay with us much longer - we have some reading helpers who have been volunteering in school for nearly 20 years.

Michelle Long, principal of Dixon’s Music Primary in Bradford, has identified 33 children in the school who she would like supported by Beanstalk.

"This gives us an immediate challenge of finding 11 new reading helpers to volunteer at the Music Primary from September," says Helen. "We want to start identifying people now so that we can vet and train them ready to start in September."

* Beanstalk is holding a drop-in session for anyone interested in volunteering at Dixon's Music Primary on Monday, April 25 from 10am-11am. There will also be holding drop-ins at libraries around Bradford over coming weeks.

For more information call 01325 315 040 or visit beanstalkcharity.org.uk

* For details about Beanstalk and becoming a volunteer reading helper, ring 0207 7294087 or visit beanstalkcharity.org.uk.