2nd day Book Corner 66

Beanstalk welcomes the news that London has been named the European Volunteering Capital for 2016 by the Centre European Volunteering (CEV), beating cities such as Rome and Edinburgh.

The award promotes volunteering at a local level by giving recognition to places which support volunteers and celebrating the big difference made by volunteers each and every day.

Gabriella Civico, director of CEV, said: “The city is an outstanding example of how local government, local people and businesses can strategically harness the benefits of volunteering to improve people’s lives and the environment, and contribute to socially cohesive communities.”

London being named as the European Volunteering Capital comes as no surprise to Bryan Rossi-Anderson, London Area Manager for Beanstalk:

“At Beanstalk we’ve known for a long time how fantastic Londoners are when it comes to volunteering their time to help change their local community. Every week over 1,000 Londoners donate their time as Beanstalk trained reading helpers, helping to provide children in their local community with the skills, confidence and imagination to reach their true potential.”

“Our award winning ‘Get London Reading’ campaign was acclaimed as an example of Londoners giving something back to make a difference in their community.”

Beanstalk works across London and supports approximately 3,000 children through over 1,000 trained reading helper volunteers.

Each Beanstalk trained reading helper works with – on average – 3 children, seeing each child for two 30 minutes sessions a week, during term-time, for three terms. Together they read, play and talk. The Beanstalk sessions, mean that their approach to learning and enjoying reading is transformed.

If you would like to become a Beanstalk trained reading helper then call 020 7729 4087 or visit www.beanstalkcharity.org.uk for more information.