ONE primary school is hoping to get boys as excited about reading as their female classmates.

St Nicholas Primary School, in Raymund Road, Old Marston, Oxford, is among the latest to sign up to take part in the Oxfordshire Reading Campaign, backed by the Oxford Mail.

The school has already bought the Project X Code books, which will be used for the reading intervention programme.

About 30 people, including volunteers from the Assisted Reading for Children charity, family members and Oxford University students, read regularly with the children.

But since the campaign launched, 10 more people have approached the school directly to express an interest in reading with youngsters there.

Headteacher Rachel Crouch said: “We believe strongly that if children can enjoy reading, it raises attainment.

“It is enjoyment of reading we are very keen on because we have some children who sadly don't enjoy reading.

“The group in particular is older boys and we are trying to promote reading, and catch them younger so they want to read for pleasure.”

The school has invested in annuals, comics, magazines and the i newspaper, as well as buying the latest boys’ fiction, to particularly appeal to boys.

Last year 80 per cent of children achieved a Level 2 or above in reading at Key Stage 1, and 73 per cent achieved the higher Level 2b.

Mrs Crouch said she would like to see that figure rise to around 80 per cent.

She said: “Our results look good but we need to make them more confident readers in Year 2.”

About 25 to 28 per cent of the school have special needs, and nearly half – 48 per cent – speak English as an additional language.

The largest group of those children speak Urdu at home.

Mrs Crouch said: “Many of those children come in without English as a language at all.

“We want to make reading pleasurable for them, which is why we have bilingual books and we employ staff who can translate and speak the mother tongue.”

The school regularly brings authors and poets in to work with the children, and takes part in World Book Day activities.

Workshops are also held for parents to show them how they can help the school teach children to read.

Assistant headteacher Vicki Davison will be leading the reading intervention alongside literacy coordinator Sarah Hopkins, while Lyn Gardham will act as volunteer coordinator.

Mrs Davison said: “The programme appealed to us because we are hoping it will help provide some children with strategies to crack the phonic code and also because of the emphasis on reading for meaning and enjoyment.

“First of all we would like to see an improvement in the number of children achieving Level 2b and above.

“We also want to see that more children are enjoying reading, and reading for meaning, rather than just using the tool of phonics.

“It is a whole school focus.”

Eysa Sahraouei, nine, said: "I love reading. It helps you learn in class and I read in my bed too. My favourite books are chapter books and I like funny books. I read mostly on my own. Reading makes me laugh."

And Billy Brunsdon, eight, said:I like reading because you find out new words and you find out more about people that you like in books. You find out more about life and about adventures. Beast Quest is my favourite."