Holme Pierrepont Country Park, home of the National Water Sports Centre, recently hosted national charity the Children’s Book Project, as a group of local volunteers sifted through over 9,000 books, readying them for donation to Nottingham school children.
In March, the Children’s Book Project launched a campaign inviting Nottingham residents to gift their pre-loved and unused children’s books and were inundated with generous donations. Then over the course of three days earlier this month, the Holme Pierrepont Country Park team provided space for volunteers to check through and pack the donated books, to be gifted to children across 12 local primary schools.
Volunteers from Serco Leisure, Asda, the University of Nottingham, the NHS, and Boots generously donated their time to help with sorting, packing and labelling, supporting the charity’s mission to bring books to children across the city who many not have access to their own.
Sean Cummings from Holme Pierrepont Country Park, said: “We are proud to have partnered with the Children’s Book Project once again on such a meaningful initiative. It’s been inspiring to see our community come together, from local volunteers to national organisations, all working towards a shared goal of giving every child the joy of owning a book.
“At Holme Pierrepont Country Park, we’re always looking at ways we can support our local community, and we’re confident the work of the Children’s Book Project will have a lasting impact.”
Laura Forrester, Regional Coordinator for the Children’s Book Project, said: “We are delighted to have this opportunity to provide children in Nottingham access to books they are inspired and excited by. The interest from local communities has been fantastic and we hope families in Nottingham continue to donate their pre-loved books using the interactive map on our website.
“We are extremely grateful to More Leisure Community Trust and Serco Leisure, who manage Holme Pierrepont Country Park, for their wonderful support and enthusiasm for our project. We hope to leave a lasting legacy in Nottingham, enabling this to be a regular campaign in the future.”
The Children’s Book Project is dedicated to tackling ‘book poverty’, with the aim to provide every child with the opportunity to choose and own books of their own. The charity recognises that book ownership can significantly enhance a child’s reading fluency which in turn impacts their successful progression through education.
Founded in 2019, The Children’s Book Project won the Queen’s Award for Volunteering in 2020 and has since donated over 1 million books across the UK. To find out more about the charity, visit www.childrensbookproject.co.uk/