Tom's Trust Supports

It is a truism that children who do not engage with school learning and become excluded tend to be recruited by gangs and get caught up in criminal activity. Tom’s Trust has recently given a grant in support of a charity called Number Champions, who work in primary schools throughout London to help children with Maths.

Every child deserves a good education so they can access better opportunities in life. Numeracy, like literacy, is a crucial part of this. Yet many children have difficulties with maths, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds. Number Champions is working to write a new story where every child counts! Improving in maths can increase a child’s self-esteem and their involvement in education as a whole.

Number Champions currently partner with over 30 state primary schools across London, where their trained volunteers run weekly one-to-one sessions for the children most in need of support. Over a full school year, the volunteers use maths games and other creative activities to make the sessions fun and engaging so that each child gains in confidence and is inspired to learn.

The most effective way to help those who do not ‘get’ maths is to provide support at an early stage, so helping children aged six to eight (School Years 2 and 3) on a one-to-one basis is the best way to get results. Over 1,000 children have already benefitted from this highly successful programme.