Future50 company behind reading app to host literacy festival

Schoolteacher Hannah Rix and husband James launched Readingmate Ltd in June 2020 to help promote reading through the pandemic.

They launched an app called Love Literacy for parents to use alongside a teaching resource called Love Literacy Tool to keep children on track and recommend appropriate reads.

And next month Readingmate, a Future 50 company, will be hosting a Festival of Literacy across two days that will see a host of online discussions.

Taking place on Tuesday, March 15, and Thursday, March 17, the festival will see talks from children's author Jim Beckett, co-founder of Phonics Hero, Katherine Wood and Ruth Edmans, a senior learning and behaviour specialist.

Mrs Rix will be giving a talk herself with Amy Lewis, head of charity Coram Beanstalk completing the line-up.

And the final day will see all of the event's speakers come together for a round-table debate on all things literacy and learning related.

Mrs Rix, an English teacher, said: "When I recall the most powerful moments from my teaching career they have come from collaborative opportunities.

"Learning from and working with exceptional minds is one of the best parts of being a teacher.

"I wanted to bring that incredible community together, give them a platform to learn from and interact with. That's why I made sure all of our speakers are people I'm interested in listening to as well."

The festival will take place between 3.45pm and 5.15pm on the two dates and will be hosted via zoom.

Mrs Rix, from Ditchingham near Bungay, added: "It has been such a trying time for schools and teachers.

"I wanted to give something back that not only added value but also recognised their incredible work.

"So we've made all of our live events, including the festival itself, completely free as occasions like these have been completely decimated over the past couple of years."

People can register to attend via Readingmate.co.uk