Literacy Volunteers

What Literacy Volunteers does

Literacy Volunteers is an independent registered charity (Charity number 1167357) founded in 1996 and headquartered in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It operates two core programmes. The Schools Programme places trained, DBS-vetted volunteers into primary schools across Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire to deliver weekly one-to-one literacy and communication support to children aged 5-11, currently operating in over 90 schools with a network of 120+ volunteers. The Early Years programme, Learning To Love Books (running since 2016), supports families with children aged 0-4 through free storytelling sessions in libraries and community venues, plus distribution of physical Storyboxes containing story books and craft activities.

The organisation runs on a volunteer-driven, human-delivered service model with no proprietary technology platform. Revenue is generated from four streams: an annual school subscription of £399 per volunteer, individual donations (including unit-priced giving at £5 per book/game, £15 per Storybox, £100 for six months of Storyboxes), corporate sponsorships, and multi-year grants from foundations such as the 1001 Critical Days Foundation, National Lottery Community Fund, Small Steps Big Changes, and various charitable trusts. The charity is governed by a Board of Trustees chaired by Mike Collis, supported by 5 part-time staff, and appointed its first-ever patron (author Jacob Dunne) in September 2025. It received the Queen's Award for Voluntary Service in 2006 and explicitly aims to expand to all 362 primary schools across its region.

Name

Literacy Volunteers

Legal name

Literacy Volunteers

Website

https://literacyvolunteers.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Children's Literacy Support Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (6117)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAKADAA

Literacy & Reading Intervention (Phonics, Fluency, Comprehension)

Education/Special Education & Learning Support Services/Specialized Tutoring & Academic Intervention (Remediation)

SECONDARYEDAMAJAO

Library, Reading Motivation & Independent Reading Programs

Education/Supplemental & Enrichment Programs (Arts, STEM, Language)/Reading, Writing & Literacy Enrichment

SECONDARYEDAAAAAE

Family Literacy (Parent/Child & Intergenerational)

Education/Adult & Continuing Education/Adult Basic Education (ABE) & Literacy

Keywords

• Literacy volunteer programme
• School reading support
• Early years literacy
• One-to-one reading support
• Community literacy charity

Headquarters

HQ city

Nottingham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. School Subscriptions: Schools pay an annual subscription fee of £399 per volunteer for the Literacy Volunteer service. This covers administration, regulatory obligations, volunteer training, vetting, out-of-pocket expenses, and a resource box containing books and games.
2. Individual Donations: One-off or regular monthly donations from individuals through Give as you Live platform, direct bank transfers, or standing orders.
3. Corporate Sponsorships and Donations: Corporate donations from companies seeking to fulfill ESG obligations. The charity converts every £1 of income into £3 of front line services through its volunteer network.
4. Grant Funding: Multi-year grants from foundations including the 1001 Critical Days Foundation, National Lottery Community Fund, and various charitable trusts supporting Early Years and school literacy programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Literacy Volunteers is an independent UK charity that recruits, trains, vets, and places volunteers in primary schools across Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire to provide weekly one-to-one literacy and reading support to children aged 5-11. Schools pay an annual subscription of £399 per volunteer, and the charity also runs the Early Years "Learning To Love Books" programme supporting families with children aged 0-4 through community storytelling sessions and Storyboxes.

Product overview

Literacy Volunteers operates two core literacy support programmes: the Schools Programme, which places trained and vetted volunteers in primary schools across Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire for weekly one-to-one reading sessions with children aged 5-11; and the Learning To Love Books Early Years Programme, launched in 2016, which supports families with children aged 0-4 through community storytelling sessions and Storyboxes distributed to families. The charity also provides a volunteer training programme, ongoing support through Volunteer/Schools Co-ordinators, and charges schools an annual subscription of £399 per volunteer to cover costs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Learning To Love Books: Early Years programme focusing on supporting families to learn to love books and stories with their children from an early age, supporting the development of the home learning environment. Running since 2016.

Products and services

• Literacy Volunteers in Schools Primary school reading volunteer programme that places trained, vetted volunteers in local primary schools to provide weekly one-to-one literacy support, helping children aged 5-11 improve reading, comprehension, vocabulary, and communication skills through reading, conversation, and educational games.
• Learning To Love Books (Early Years Programme) Early Years programme supporting families with children aged 0-4 to develop early literacy skills and a love of books, delivered through free stay-and-play storytelling sessions in libraries and community venues, Storybox provision, library membership support, and home learning environment assistance.
• Storyboxes

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 14,000 hours face time with children delivered in 2022
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Doorstep Library: UK charity that sends volunteers into disadvantaged communities to share books and stories with families, including a family-literacy focus similar to Literacy Volunteers' Learning To Love Books programme.
• Bookmark Reading Charity: National UK charity placing volunteer reading mentors in primary schools to improve children's literacy. Directly comparable volunteer-led, school-based reading intervention model with similar target beneficiaries.
• Schoolreaders: UK charity that recruits and places vetted volunteers in primary schools to provide one-to-one reading support to children. Closest direct competitor to Literacy Volunteers' core school programme, with a similar volunteer-led, school-subscription-funded model.
• Volunteer Reading Help: UK charity (now part of Read Easy) historically providing volunteer reading support to children in schools. Highly comparable volunteer-led reading intervention model targeting primary-age children.
• Beanstalk (reading charity): UK charity that trains and places volunteer reading helpers in primary schools to support children who struggle with reading. Direct peer with very similar one-to-one volunteer reading model.

Broad incumbents

• National Literacy Trust: Major UK literacy charity operating across all age groups with programmes in schools, communities, and policy advocacy. A broader incumbent and listed supporter of Literacy Volunteers, with overlapping mission but much wider scope and reach.
• BookTrust: UK children's literacy charity providing books and resources to families and children, including early-years programmes. Broader remit with overlapping early-years literacy and family engagement mission.

Emerging players

• Read Easy: UK charity providing free one-to-one reading coaching for adults, with volunteer-led delivery model. Adjacent literacy mission with shared volunteer-coordination infrastructure but adult-focused rather than child-focused.
• Dolly Parton's Imagination Library: Book-gifting programme that posts free books to children from birth to age five. Comparable to Literacy Volunteers' Storybox distribution for early literacy, though it operates via mail rather than in-person sessions.

Others

• Small Steps Big Changes: National Lottery A Better Start programme funding early-intervention work for under-fours in Nottingham. Both a current funder and a strategic ecosystem partner collaborating on the Learning To Love Books programme.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/LiteracyVolunteersNotts
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/literacy-volunteers

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Literacy Volunteers