A group of five Year 6 pupils from St Mary’s School, Beverley, raised £525 to create a new reading corner at their school through their Lifestyle Project – perfectly timed for the National Year of Reading 2026.
The team organised an inspiring series of community activities including a bake sale, litter picking, a sports day at the local park, supporting Beverley Fire Station and running a school tuck shop. Their efforts raised £230, which was generously added-to by local modular construction firm Baúkasten, bringing the total to £525.
The reading corner features two beanbags, a selection of BooksforBugs Key Stage 2 reading books, a set of dyslexia pens, two Kindles and four sets of headphones – creating an inviting space to inspire young readers.
“We had so much fun helping our community and are pleased to give something back to our school,” said the Year 6 team. “The reading corner will help everyone enjoy books even more.”
Adam Millikin, Managing Director of Baúkasten, said: “It’s a joy to provide these extra items for St Mary’s reading corner. Reading is so important for expanding young minds and imaginations - who knows, we may even encourage some future authors amongst these brilliant girls.”
Laura Wallis, Headteacher from St Mary’s, said: “We are so proud of the children and are delighted that they have worked so hard and shown such commitment to enhancing our reading provision. Reading is such an important part of school life at St Mary’s and it is wonderful that we now have some fantastic new resources to make reading even more accessible and enjoyable for the children.”
The project aligns beautifully with the government’s National Year of Reading 2026 campaign, which aims to reignite a love of reading among children and young people at a time when reading for pleasure has declined sharply. Baúkasten’s donation demonstrates local business commitment to supporting education and literacy in the community.
