A statement in light of recent attacks
The Reader currently runs Shared Reading Groups for asylum seekers and refugees and/or those who have English as an additional language across the UK. We, like so many, are devastated to see the deplorable violent attacks on communities and are reflecting on the words of one of our wonderful volunteer Reader Leaders, Jane who runs one of these Shared Reading groups. Her words feel more poignant now than ever:
“For displaced people, so much of their interaction with their new country is transactional – filling in forms and so on. I wanted to communicate with them as humans – soul to soul.
“Shared Reading really is a way to meet people as equals, where we are all learning from each other. The literature is a catalyst for connection which is so needed by transient and marginalised communities. For that hour when we’re stuck into a great poem or story they feel seen and heard.”
Share
Related Articles

Suvi: ‘We’ve had really deep conversations about what it entails to leave your home and then grow new roots in a new land’
Suvi Dogra has been involved with The Reader for the past decade as a volunteer, group member or staff member.…

Nataliia: ‘The Skelmersdale Shared Reading group has become like family to me’
Former recruitment manager Nataliia, relocated to the UK from war-torn Ukraine in January 2023. Her home city of Polohy in…

Jane: ‘Shared Reading with asylum seekers is a weekly reminder of our lucky chance of being born in a safe country’
Retired teacher Jane has been leading a highly successful ESOL Shared Reading group for speakers of other languages in Skelmersdale,…