Get Into Reading grows in Liverpool

Great news for growing the Reading Revolution at our base in Liverpool - The Reader Organisation has recently received two successful bids for our work in the area, which will enable us to keep connecting people through great literature and reach even more people across the city.

The Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital Trust have commissioned The Reader Organisation for a three year project running shared reading groups in chronic pain settings across the trust. We already a deliver a group for people living with chronic pain at Broadgreen Hospital, started as part of a research project by the Centre for Research into Reading, Information and Linguistic Systems (CRILS) investigating the effects shared reading may have upon the condition. Though the research period has come to an end (with the report expected soon), the members' benefits have ensured that the group is continuing. The impact of the chronic pain group was highlighted at this year's Reader Organisation National Conference:

"I used to be crying at night sometimes …but now it’s given me a lift, I feel better and I can use the time better… to read instead." - member of chronic pain group, Broadgreen Hospital

This new commission from The Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital Trust enables more shared reading groups to be set up in the area of chronic pain, as well as potentially expanding into dialysis wards and other areas of physical health.

We have also received funding from Liverpool Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) to continue our delivery of Get Into Reading across Liverpool until March 2014. This means that we can continue to build upon the 70+ groups currently running in a variety of settings across Liverpool, giving more people of all ages and backgrounds the chance to encounter the social, often powerful experience of shared reading:

"This group has been a lifeline for me. I escape everyday pressures for a few hours every week and I’d be lost without it." - Peter, Get Into Reading member at Toxteth Library