Topic Heroes, the children’s literacy charity, is on a mission to inspire creativity and ignite a love for reading and writing by providing a learning resource that allows children to write their very own topic book online.

Founded by Lucy Swanston, managing director of Nutshell Creative, the charity is making strides to tackle the literacy crisis among children in the UK. In collaboration with Richard Pepper, founder of funkypigeon.com, the charity aims to provide free access to Topic Heroes for every child in primary school — bridging the gap in literacy and cultivating a future generation that cherishes books and print.

Ms Swanston explained, ‘As a mum of three boys, it was a struggle to keep them engaged with reading and writing. I knew I had to find a creative way to inspire them. I realised that I wasn’t alone in this struggle, many parents face the same challenge. That’s why we created Topic Heroes; to make reading and writing fun and accessible for all children, helping them to discover the joy of books and the power of their own creativity.’

 

Why literacy matters more than ever

With nearly one million children aged five to 18 lacking a book of their own, the most recent academic year saw 187,000 children not meeting the expected literacy standards, imposing a societal cost estimated at £830 million per cohort of five-year-olds.

Topic Heroes aims to address this by offering a creative and interactive literacy platform designed with support from leading literacy academics and aligned with the National Curriculum.

 

A call to action

With a dedicated board of trustees and volunteers, Topic Heroes has already completed several successful pilots in local schools as well as partnering with careers hubs, providing a bespoke activity-based topic book to get children thinking about their skills and achievements and how to use these to support their journey into the world of work.

Now, the charity is calling on the print industry to help bring its vision to every primary-school-aged child in the UK. Every donation plays a crucial role in supporting this transformative cause. Every contribution helps ensure that no child is left behind in the literacy journey and, ultimately, that the love of print is passed down to future generations.

Every £10,000 raised provides over 4000 children with their own Topic Heroes book.

To learn more about Topic Heroes and how to contribute, visit: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/help-improve-childrens-engagement-with-literacy