How pirates boost children's literacy
Emily Rogers
Monday, July 20, 2015
The Hackney Pirates helps struggling schoolchildren improve literacy skills, confidence and perseverance.
Project
The Hackney Pirates
Funding
The charity's annual income is now about £270,000 from a mixture of grants, fundraising and contributions from schools
Background
As a teacher in North London, Catriona Maclay was frustrated by the fact that however hard teachers worked, there were pupils who needed more time and attention than the school day allowed.
She left teaching in 2008 and went on to develop a new approach to working with children struggling at school in the London Borough of Hackney. "I felt there were so many children who would benefit from extra support and the community had all sorts of untapped resources," she says.
In 2010, Maclay ran a four-week summer pilot for 36 young people and 50 volunteers "on an absolute shoestring". This became The Hackney Pirates, which now has six staff and 250 volunteers, supporting around 140 children a week.
Action
The Hackney Pirates programme takes place in its Ship of Adventures, a converted four-storey building in Dalston high street, designed like a ship inside.
Schools join the programme as members, enabling them to refer nine to 12-year-olds who have been falling behind or are disadvantaged. They can also use the space and get training. Fourteen Hackney schools are currently members.
Programme staff initially visit children at school to give them a taste of what happens in the "ship" and taster sessions also take place at the venue.
Children go on to attend for two and a half hours after school once a week from September, for an academic year. They work with volunteers one-to-one and in small groups to complete three publishing projects: a book, website and CD. The finished products are sold in the ship's own high street shop.
Outcome
Teachers reporting on 100 children in a survey in February said 85 per cent showed an improvement in writing skills, 74 per cent showed improved reading, 72 per cent increased confidence and 59 per cent increased perseverance.
Out of of 85 children, 93 per cent said the programme helped them at school, 87 per cent said it helped with writing, 93 per cent said it helped with reading and 90 per cent said they felt more confident. Of those who previously said they didn't like reading, 88 per cent said they now enjoyed it more.
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