Room to Read
Room to Read seeks to transform the lives of millions of children across Asia and Africa by focusing on literacy and gender equality in education. Working with local communities, partner organisations and governments, we develop literacy skills and a habit of reading among primary school children, and support girls to complete secondary school with the relevant life skills to succeed in school and beyond.
Room to Read helps children in Asia and Africa to gain the lifelong gift of education through four core programmes:
- Reading Room — We establish libraries and stock them with local-language children’s books, original Room to Read titles, donated English-language books, games and furniture to create a child-friendly learning environment.
- School Room — We partner with local communities to build schools so children can learn in a safe, child-friendly environment.
- Local Language Publishing — We source new content from local writers and illustrators and publish high-quality children’s books in the local language to distribute throughout our networks.
- Girls’ Education — We provide long-term, holistic support enabling girls to pursue and complete their secondary education.
To increase the likelihood of success and long-term sustainability, Room to Read enlists community involvement and co-investment through our Challenge Grant model. Villages often raise a significant portion of the overall expenditure in the form of dedicated space, labour, materials and/or small amounts of money. These challenge grants act as catalysts for community building while also maximising the local participation and expertise brought to our programmes. We hire local staff, who are personally vested in their nation’s educational progress and we empower them to manage programmes within their country. They are already familiar with the language, conditions, customs and governments and understand the specific needs of the educational system.
In the ten years since Room to Read was launched, we have established 11,000 libraries, published 550 local language children’s titles, distributed 9 million books, provided scholarships to 10,500 girls, and constructed 1,400 schools.
Find out more about our work at www.roomtoread.org. Room to Read is a registered charity in England and Wales. Registered charity no. 1125803.
Quintessentially Foundation fundraising events for Room to Read:
Online auction – In support of Room to Read’s Financial Times Seasonal Appeal, Quintessentially Foundation held a successful online auction, with some fantastic prizes, which raised over £55,000
London to Land’s End Cycle ride – Quintessentially Foundation donated £50,000 of the funds raised from this challenging bike ride, to Room to Read. This provided valuable funding for our programmes, as well as a matched fund, which we leveraged to secure two further major gifts from other Room to Read supporters.
Summer Garden Party – An event co-hosted by Room to Read and Quintessentially Foundation, to raise awareness of the charity. Quintessentially members were introduced to Room to Read, and asked to bring their friends for an enjoyable summer evening with John Wood, Room to Read’s Founder Co- Chair.
Room to Read Wine Gala – Quintessentially Foundation supported this annual event, hosted by Jancis Robinson and the Financial Times. Ben Elliot hosted a table of guests, and Quintessentially Foundation provided support with entertainment and auction prizes.
Hong Kong Quintessentially Fashion Event – This event hosted by Quintessentially in Hong Kong, raised over £26,000 for Room to Read projects.
South Africa Event – an information evening with a member of Room to Read’s South Africa team, was kindly hosted by Quintessentially
How has Quintessentially Foundation’s funding helped?
- In total, Quintessentially Foundation has donated £229,719 to Room to Read’s projects.
- This sum is enough to help 6,000 children to gain the lifelong gift of education.
Quintessentially Foundation’s donations have been distributed to the following projects:
Quintessentially Foundation in partnership with Room to Read constructed a shared Library in Kapungwe in Zambia
In 2011 the Quintessentially Foundation in partnership with Room to Read constructed a shared Library in Kapungwe in Zambia. This was achieved through the 2010 bike ride from London to Land’s End which raised £127,000. The library is located in the Eastern Province, which is a wet, rural region in eastern Zambia that contains lush farmland and fertile growing fields. While farming and agriculture dominate the provincial economy, the region is one of the poorest in Zambia with most residents living off subsistence crop production and lacking access to even the most basic of needs.
The Reading Room team in Zambia works hard to select the most appropriate and engaging reading materials to stock the libraries. The Zambia team purchases local language and English books from retailers and publishers in Zambia, in addition to receiving English books through our global English book donation system. The majority of the books Room to Read provide are in English because children in Zambia are taught in English starting in Grade 2. Room to Read has provided 934 English books and other resources to this library.
Kapungwe Basic School library will receive three full years of additional support from Room to Read, which will include approximately 1,000 new books and regular monitoring visits to assess the library and provide continued support to the librarian and teachers to ensure the library provides many years of reading enjoyment for the students.
Your investment in our work has helped Quintessentially Foundation achieve ambitious goals and encourages us to continue to think big as we plan for the year ahead. Room to Read would like to say a huge thank you for your partnership as we work together to promote literacy and gender equality in education, giving more children the opportunities they deserve. Quintessentially Foundations investment has provided a tremendous gift to this community that will be used by hundreds of children over the years ahead.
Shree Sankha Devi Lower Secondary School, Nepal
A new four-room school building has been constructed, to provide an improved learning environment for 384 students currently attending the school. These students were previously using small classrooms with mud flooring, a leaking roof, and poor ventilation. In the new school, three rooms are being used as classrooms and one houses a library. The classrooms are well ventilated, have ample natural light, and can accommodate 55 students each very comfortably. One student says: “The rooms are way better than what we were used to in our old building. It’s spacious and we all can sit comfortably, the teacher can move about freely, and we don’t have to squint because natural light filters into the room”
Petauke Basic School Constructed Reading Room, Zambia
A stand-alone library is being built, which will serve 2,469 students at Petauke School, as well as local community members. Previously there was no library, and no room available at the school to house a library. This funding is providing books, furniture, games, puzzles, posters, librarian training, and three years of support from Room to Read to ensure the library is properly accessed and managed.
Another two libraries are being established in existing school buildings in Zambia, which will serve hundreds more students each, and include 500-1,000 local language and English language books.
Girls’ Education programme
Funding has enabled us to provide 10 years of education for 20 girls in Asia and Africa, who would not otherwise have access to an education. This programme aims to motivate, educate and empower girls by providing the support they need to enroll and remain in school. We provide material support (school fees, textbooks, uniforms, school supplies and transportation) as well as a range of supplementary activities (tutoring, life skills training, mentoring and medical check-ups) that contribute to the girls’ educational success.
Schools Libraries – India
Quintessentially Foundation’s generous donation of £20,000 in 2011, will enable Room to Read to establish new libraries in schools in India. The libraries are being established in Government Primary Schools in Potiyawand, Talpara Badedevda, and Mindiguda Sandhkarmari.
Room to Read libraries contain local language and English books, as well as games, puzzles, and posters. Equally important, we provide training to teacher librarians who help children make use of library resources, as well as three years of ongoing support that includes book donations and teacher training. Room to Read collaborates with government and school administrators to ensure that they understand the importance of libraries and the skills that students develop through library use. We aim to provide high-quality, accessible children’s books and librarian training in order to develop strong reading habits among children.
