Iszi Lawrence has so many job titles it’s a struggle to list them all, but here are a few: writer, comedian, podcaster and History presenter with countless TV credits and radio contributions.

But it’s as an author and lover of history that she comes to Hastings this week, to share her passion with students from a number of schools in our town.

Both children and teachers of years three and four are taking part in this ground-breaking local reading programme developed by the National Literacy Trust Hastings Hub and Bloomsbury Publishing.

The scheme has run throughout the year and has involved authors visits each term to ignite the spark of creativity in the listeners. And it seems to be working.

Statistics from the National Literacy Trust show that more children and young people who had experienced an author visit reported that they enjoyed reading in their free time compared with their peers who hadn’t experienced one (58.6% vs. 39.3%). (Full report published June 2023)

This week, as the final visit of the year, Iszi Lawrence is talking about her new book Explorers and Milkshakes between June 13 and 15 with more than 1,000 schoolchildren from Silverdale, Hollington, West St Leonard’s, Robsack Wood, Churchwood, Baird and Dudley Infant Academy.

Iszi’s visits promise to be as engaging and entertaining as previous author visits and a great way to see out the school year. She will be at Silverdale and Hollington on June 13, West St Leonards, Robsack, and Churchwood on June 14, and finishes in style at Baird, and Dudley Infant on June 15.

The National Literacy Trust has a mission to improve the reading, writing, speaking and listening skills of those who most need it. Its research and analysis make them the leading authority on literacy and it believes literacy is a vital element of action against poverty. The Trust have created Words for Life a website that provides simple, fun and educational activities for children and young people aged 0-24 to support learning at home and help them feel more confident.

The Hastings Literacy Hub began in 2019 raising awareness of the importance of literacy while encouraging reading for pleasure. They run their Literacy Hubs in communities where low levels of literacy and social mobility have serious impact on their lives.

Alison Sleet manages Hastings Literacy Hub. She said: “Every child in Hastings deserves the opportunity to fall in love with reading and develop the literacy skills that will help them thrive. Working with our friends at Bloomsbury Publishing we will be able to reach the children who need our help the most, hopefully sparking a life-long love of reading that can change life stories.”

Further information can be found at literacytrust.org.uk and for fun activities to do at home check out wordsforlife.org.uk

Families in Hastings are encouraged to get outside and practise their communication and literacy skills this summer with a new Lost Words Trail around the town.

As part of the Get Hastings Reading campaign, the trail will take families to eight locations along the seafront to find a nature-themed word at each venue. Families will be encouraged to take part in simple activities along the way to get them talking about the great outdoors and the lost words they have found.

The Lost Words Trail is inspired by The Lost Words: A Spell Book, written by Robert Macfarlane and illustrated by Jackie Morris, and features beautiful words and artwork from the book. It aims to reconnect children with nature and the great outdoors by exploring words that are falling out of common usage. Research suggests that children have a much deeper and broader understanding of the world around them if they experience the outdoors. Spending time outside as a family gives children the chance to talk about their surroundings, learn new words and improve their communication skills.

Get Hastings Reading was launched by the National Literacy Trust and Hastings Opportunity Area in January this year to improve the literacy outcomes of children and young people in Hastings and promote a love of reading throughout the town.

As families complete the trail, they will also find letters which they can unscramble to reveal a hidden word. They can then use their hidden word to enter a prize draw to win a beautiful copy of The Lost Words: A Spell Book or family tickets to a show at the White Rock Theatre. Families can enter the draw by emailing gethastingsreading@literacytrust.org.uk or by dropping their Lost Word Trail map off at Hastings Library.

The trail launches on Friday 24th May and will run through to the end of the summer holidays, and the competition closes at the end of August.

• Further information at gethastingsreading.org.uk