A 95-year-old former secretary has told of her enjoyment at reading with schoolchildren, and recommends others to give it a try.

Great-grandmother Bunty Wares decided to join Schoolreaders after seeing an advert in the Echo more than three years ago, asking for anyone from 18 to 92 to volunteer.

Bunty spent two hours a week at Bevois Town Primary School reading with Year 2 pupils who needed just a little extra help.

Though she did recently stop, she says the scrapbook of her former pupil's handwritten farewells is something she will "treasure". 

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Bunty said: "My great-grandchildren have grown up, and I do love little ones, so I thought I would give it a go.

"Getting to see the children’s reading improve and seeing children learn to enjoy reading, when they hadn’t previously, was great.

"When I left, every child in the little class wrote a little note for me, and the teacher put it in a scrapbook. It was lovely. I shall treasure it always, it is so sweet."

She volunteered at the school while balancing volunteering on the management committee for her local bowls club.

“I found that many children needed just a little bit of encouragement,” she added. “Soon, when I went into the class, they nearly all put their hands up to read with me. It was very wholesome.

"I would recommend it for other people, but they have to like or even love children. It was a lovely thing to do, and gave me a great deal of pleasure, and apparently it did help the children."

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Schoolreaders provides more than 33,000 children with weekly classroom reading sessions in England, connecting over 3,300 volunteers with primary schools.

The charity, which sets children up to enjoy a lifetime of learning, is seeking more volunteers across the country. 

Schoolreaders says that if it were to monetise the value of its volunteers’ hours, it would equate to a minimum of £2,575,757 at the National Living Wage rate for the 2023/24 year.

Volunteers are provided with guidance and training, including safeguarding and reading support best practice.

To learn more about volunteering with Schoolreaders, visit its website