Fairfax Media First Books Receives Recognition

Fairfax Media First Books Receives Robin Hood Recognition

Fairfax Media was selected by the Robin Hood Foundation as a finalist in the youth partnership category of the 2007 Social Hero Awards, acknowledging leaders in corporate social responsibility.

The Fairfax First Books programme has provided over 4,500 kindergarten children with a new book each term. Last year Fairfax Media distributed over 18,000 books to children in low decile kindergarten in association with New Zealand Kindergarten’s Incorporated (NZKI).

This is one of the initiatives by which Fairfax Media actively promotes the importance of reading and literacy to children. Fairfax First Books aims to improve the reading levels of children under five years so they are better prepared for school. As they get to keep the books and then take them home, it is also a means of promoting reading within families.

Research shows that 9-year-olds in New Zealand have the second worst reading skills amongst English speaking countries. Poor literacy skills have also been linked to a greater likelihood of unemployment, lower pay when in work and poor health in children.

The network of Fairfax Media community newspapers also played an important role in the First Books programme, with each newspaper taking control of the distribution of books to kindergartens within their own community.

Fairfax Media Group Sales and Marketing Manager, Sandra King said, “We undertook this programme in order to allow preschoolers who may not otherwise have the opportunity to own their own books. In turn, this allows children to begin their education being familiar with and hopefully getting pleasure from books. Being selected as finalist is really the icing on the cake.”

Ms King believes the success of the programme is a reflection of the hard work put into the programme by the Kindergartens themselves, who often arranged special events for the handover of books, the Fairfax network of community newspapers and of course the NZKI.

Fairfax Media were also the sponsor of the education partnership category at the 27 July award ceremony, won by IBM for their KidSmart initiative. Designed to introduce technology to young children, their parents and teachers in ways that enhance early childhood education, this programme has enabled up to 15,000 financially disadvantaged children to gain access to a computer - often for the first time.

Robin Hood Foundation CEO, Jude Mannion, says “In the five years since The Robin Hood Foundation was founded, the health of CSR in New Zealand has gone from strength to strength. Fairfax Media, who have participated both as a sponsor of Robin Hood and as a partner to NZKI more than deserve the recognition they have received at these awards”

ENDS

© Scoop Media