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Anyone who knows me knows I am a total Diet Coke addict - I drink litres of the stuff every day! After years of nagging I am finally going to give up for a month to see if I can do it and to raise money for my charity Volunteer Reading Help (VRH). Volunteer Reading Help (VRH) is a national charity that gives one-to-one literacy support to children in primary schools in the most deprived areas of England.  Each week we support over 5,000 children through over 1,800 volunteers in 1,100 schools and we continue to grow each year.  The children we work with are chosen by their teachers because they struggle with reading and urgently need one-to-one support.  Our trained network of reading helpers support the same children week in, week out, giving each an hour of quality, one-to-one time. They read, they play, they talk. With the support of VRH their approach to learning and enjoying is often transformed.  Their confidence, self esteem and reading standards improve - our latest evaluation showed that: ·         96% of children showed improved reading performance ·         96% of children showed an improved attitude to reading and confidence in reading ·         96% of children showed an improvement in overall achievement ·         94% of children showed an improvement in general confidence and self esteem ·         92% showed an improvement in motivation   The need for our service has never been greater. Almost one in five children left primary school last year unable to read to the required standard – and this is the same today as it was five years ago. Far too many of them at age eleven had a reading age lower than the average seven year old – and again there has been no change in five years. It costs just £330 a year to provide this one-to-one literacy support to a child and I’m trying to raise this amount through my fundraising efforts. I’m not going to drink any other fizzy drinks either for the whole month so I won’t be cheating – just water, tea and the occasional alcohol (!)   Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity. So please dig deep and donate now - thanks for your support!

Steve's Diet Coke Detox

Steve's Diet Coke Detox

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