The Reader teams up with Arriva and Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse Theatres for National Share-A-Story Month

Arriva North West and Wales has teamed up with The Reader and Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse Theatres for a whole host of activities to support National Share-A-Story Month in May.

National Share-A-Story Month (NSSM) is an annual celebration of the power of storytelling and story sharing. Arriva, The Reader and the Everyman & Playhouse Theatres have planned some exciting ways that everyone in the family can celebrate storytelling:

These include:

• Surprise poems relating to the North West region left on Arriva buses throughout the month to inspire and entertain passengers
• Volunteer storytellers from the Everyman & Playhouse travelling on buses in Merseyside to tell stories to children and their families on routes popular for days out in May half term week - For details of story telling bus schedule click here!
• Story and Song sessions in dementia care settings across Liverpool during May organised by the Everyman & Playhouse and The Reader.
• Arriva to donate 300 tickets to people living with dementia and their carers for a dementia friendly performance of Paint Your Wagon at the Everyman on Tuesday 3 July.
• Encouraging people to share tales of their family days out and stories about the best places they’ve been together in the region on social media using the #shareastorymonth hashtag. The best stories or poems will have a chance of winning travel passes, theatre tickets, and book tokens - To share your stories click here!

Lisa Pearson from Arriva North West & Wales said: “We are so excited to team up with The Reader and the Everyman & Playhouse for National Share-A-Story Month. We wanted to create events and activities the whole family can get involved with and experience theatre, poetry, and share their own stories.”

Louise Stothard from the Federation of Children's Books Groups, who created National Share-A-Story Month said. “It’s fantastic that Arriva, The Reader and the Everyman & Playhouse have come together to celebrate NSSM on the 50th anniversary of the Federation. The core aim of the organisation is bringing children and stories together. The activity happening here in the North West is bringing not just children, but the whole family together to celebrating storytelling and poetry, and that is a wonderful thing!”

Jane Davis, The Reader’s Founder and Director said: “We’re thrilled to be celebrating National Share-A-Story Month with Arriva and the Everyman & Playhouse. Research from UNESCO shows that ‘reading for pleasure is the single most important thing that will make a child successful in life’ and we see the power that great stories have in our work every day. Whether it’s our sessions for families and schools at The Storybarn at Calderstones or Treasure Island at Liverpool ONE, or our Shared Reading groups for adults run by our brilliant volunteers; we see stories bringing people and communities together.”

Rebecca Ross-Williams, engagement director at the Everyman & Playhouse said: “Share a Story month is such a lovely opportunity for people of all ages to tell stories, hear stories and create their own stories. We are delighted to be able to engage families through storytelling on buses and to reach so many people living with dementia with stories and songs this month.”