Slaughter and May sponsors National Literacy Trust research

Research sponsored by Slaughter and May has recently been published by the National Literacy Trust, one of the firm’s main community partners.

The research examined how role models can influence young people’s reading habits. Key findings demonstrated that family members and sports people are the most likely role models for primary and secondary schoolchildren. Reading for pleasure has been identified as the most important indicator of the future success of a child (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, 2002). The findings of this research will help the National Literacy Trust to continue building its successful programme 'Premier League Reading Stars', through which Premier League football players work with schools and libraries to encourage children to read.

The firm sponsored this research because it agrees with the National Literacy Trust’s position that low levels of literacy are a barrier to achieving social justice. By supporting the National Literacy Trust’s work, the firm hopes to ensure that future generations will reap the personal and professional benefits of literacy.

Commenting on the report, Jonathan Douglas, the National Literacy Trust’s director, said:

"Previously, there had been little research into the use of role models to promote literacy. Slaughter and May’s support of the role models research has made a huge impact. This study has given us incredibly valuable insight into young people’s role models and their ideas of success. Crucially, it provides us with a robust evidence base for the use of family and sports role models, which we can use effectively to promote literacy and increase aspirations and life chances for those we work with in the UK. The research also added weight to our media campaign on sports role models, which received widespread press coverage and enabled us to reach a wonderfully wide audience."

Visit the National Literacy Trust's website to find out more about the research

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