Thursday September 28th, 2006, was a very special day for everyone at Wykebeck Primary School. It was the day that HRH Princess Anne came to visit us.  | | The Queen's Award |
The Princess Royal came to praise the school's Read It Volunteers, who give up their lunch hour every Wednesday to read with the children.
Their efforts have recently been rewarded with the Queen's Award for Voluntary Service.
During her visit the Princess Royal found time to visit all the Key Stage 2 classes. She also met Read It Volunteers and attended a short assembly paying tribute to the commitment of all those involved in the scheme.
A successful scheme Gail Clarke from Learning Partnerships, the educational charity which organises these award winning volunteers, spoke to us. She says she thinks the scheme has been so sucessful because, "The volunteers have shown immense commitment to Wykebeck and continue to be an enormous support to the children in their reading.
The programme has been running for over four years and will continue as long as there are funds." Cola, a reading volunteer who has been coming to Wykebeck since the scheme started gave us the following interview: Why do you like reading at Wykebeck? I like reading at Wykebeck because it's a great school to work with. Do you find it interesting? Yes, the children are particularly interesting and it is a pleasure to work with so many different people. Do you mind giving up your lunchtime to read with us? Do you have time for your lunch too? I don't mind giving up my lunchtime at all. I usually eat at my desk when I get back to work. Do you enjoy reading at home? I do. What is your favorite type of book? I read lots of different types of book but my favorite, when I was younger, was science fiction. Why do you think our reading volunteer programme has been so successful? I think it's because of the amount of work Mrs Cockerham, your Deputy Headteacher, puts into the scheme and her personality and enthusiasm for the task. Did you go to Buckingham Palace to receive the Queen’s Award? Yes, I was one of the lucky few who got to go to the palace. What was it like? It was surreal and fantastic to receive an award, but actually I have been to Buckingham Palace before so I knew what it would be like. It was really big.
There were about 8,000 people in the garden for the party. The buffet food was nice but all the sandwiches were very small with the crusts cut off so I had to go back for more!
We want to say a big thank you to all the Read It Volunteers who have come to help us read over the last four years. We really love reading with you. Please keep coming and then the Queen herself might come to visit next time!
By Peter and Louise
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