Praise for parents as community tutoring fund goes from strength to strength

Jo Austin, business owner of “Read The Question” tutoring in Hebden Bridge, has thanked parents who have donated lesson time to help local, disadvantaged children.
The fund has already benefitted around 20 children.The fund has already benefitted around 20 children.
The fund has already benefitted around 20 children.

The “Ask The Question” fund, set up in 2017, allows parents to “donate a lesson” to enable a local disadvantaged child to have a free tutoring session.

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The fund has already benefitted around 20 children, granting them the opportunity to enjoy a lesson on whatever subject or topic they feel they need a little extra help or support with.

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Jo said: “Now it is more important than ever to publicly thank and give appreciation to the generosity and community spirit of so many of our local parents who despite facing unprecedented uncertainty for themselves, have continued to support this vital initiative.”

The “thank you” comes amid the news that some children could be left “a year behind” their peers academically due to school closures and lack of teaching due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sir Peter Lampl, chairman of the Education Endowment Foundation, said: “School closures are likely to have a devastating impact on the poorest children and young people. The attainment gap widens when children are not in school. There is strong evidence that high quality tuition is a cost-effective way to enable pupils to catch up.”

Jo added: “It is the most rewarding part of my work to see the direct impact that the support of the local parent community is able to have on these children’s lives, and now it has become more important than ever. Our mission is to help every individual child to reach their maximum potential, and with school closures there’s been a greater pressure than ever at putting that potential at risk.”

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