We’re excited to announce our new literacy recovery observatory, where we will bring together up-to-date research, policy and analysis on the impact of COVID-19 on children and young people’s learning, literacy and wellbeing.
Collating studies exploring the effects of the pandemic on children from early years until secondary school, the observatory focuses on how the pandemic affected and exacerbated pre-existing educational inequalities.
You can find our key findings and summary here and discussion, analysis and recommendations here.
We’ll be updating this when new research is released, so all those engaged in supporting children’s literacy, from parents and teachers to businesses and policymakers can see the latest information at a glance.
The page sits alongside our digital education recovery offer, where we offer support and resources for teachers, parents and practitioners.
We want to improve literacy outcomes for all children, focusing on disadvantaged communities where the impact of lockdown on learning has been the most damaging. While the data may be stark, it reaffirms the essential importance of our work as well as the critical role research and evidence must play in informing policy decisions.
Jonathan Douglas CBE, Chief Executive of the National Literacy Trust
As researchers, we spend considerable time collating and reviewing existing literature on the state of the UK’s literacy and learning. The National Literacy Trust realised no other organisation was bringing all the essential research into the effects of COVID-19 together in one place. The observatory will be regularly updated to reflect the latest findings and we hope parents, practitioners and policymakers alike will benefit from the information.
Dr. Christina Clark, Head of Research at the National Literacy Trust