Students in Schools

The 'Students in Schools' scheme places student volunteers in local schools, to help school children raise aspirations and encourage them to continue into higher education. University students develop their personal and employability skills. The scheme has been established for over 20 years and each year several hundred students visit over 40 local schools including primary, secondary and special schools. 

We are very pleased to have been working alongside the University of Reading in their 'Students in Schools' scheme since 2016. Over the last 7 years, we have had about 100 students who have come into school to provide additional support in the classroom, this year we already have 10! The students have been placed in every year group across the school, so children in all classes will be supported by them at some stage. As well as students gaining valuable experience in communicating their knowledge and ideas, they improve their self-confidence. Teachers welcome the extra help and the children enjoy having a new face in the classroom. Typically, they will make 10 weekly visits of 1 or 2 hours during the Autumn and Spring term due to exams in the Summer term, however many students decide to stay longer and this year one student decided to return for a second year.

With around 150 languages spoken in schools in the area, Reading’s international students are perfectly placed to support children with little-to-no English. This year we are lucky enough to have volunteers who can help our new arrivals from overseas. We have Arabic, Cantonese, Polish, Russian and more  working with our children in their native language and helping them learn English.

We look forward to another year working alongside the University of Reading.