Newtown CE Primary School Awarded National Lottery Funding

We are celebrating this week after being awarded £10,000 of National Lottery funding to secure the provision of the Newtown Community Bookshop.

Following the closure of the only Bookshop in Gosport, the school has already begun to invite parents to access new books for their children at a cost of £1. This grant funding will enable the bookshop to grow and be a driving force in the community to improve fluency in reading and writing and develop the children’s phonics skills.

We are now planning to celebrate the grant by organising an event to coincide with World Book Day, which will initially offer each child in the school one free new book. The funds will then secure the bookshop for a minimum of two years, whereby the community and families can access books to develop a love of family reading. In addition the Newtown Community Bookshop will offer a cyber café and provide the classrooms and family groups with e-readers.

Finally, the grant, awarded through the Big Lottery Fund, will allow the school to have theatre productions and visits from authors, to capture the school’s and community’s imagination, to promote books and story writing. We are also developing the school’s links with the Gosport Discovery Centre and hope to encourage more children and families to become members of our local library.

Mrs Howlett, Headteacher, is thrilled to have been awarded the funding:

"As a school, we believe every child deserves the opportunity to access books and stories to encourage a love of reading and writing. We have high expectations for pupils to use their writing and reading skills effectively in all English work and this grant will enable all of our pupils to fulfil their potential and ensure they are well placed to succeed in their futures. Thank you to everyone who plays the National Lottery, we wouldn’t be able to do this without you."

National Lottery players raise £30m every week for good causes, funding arts, heritage, sports, voluntary and charity projects around the UK.