The National Literacy Trust has released its latest report, Children and Young People’s Writing in 2025, highlighting the significant decline in children’s enjoyment of writing. Although the focus is on writing in their free time, the findings offer crucial insight into how pupils feel about writing in general. At Literacy Counts, we believe every child deserves to see themselves as a successful writer. That is why our Head of Consultancy and Professional Development, Claire Belisari, has taken time to reflect on the report and share how Ready Steady Write addresses these challenges directly.

Ready Steady Write is intentionally designed to nurture confident, capable and motivated writers. Here is how it addresses the key areas identified in the report:

Pupils building confidence through structured writing lessons in primary school

1. Helps children see themselves as successful writers

Ready Steady Write uses small steps and scaffolded progression to build confidence.

Children experience success at every stage – from sentence-level work to full compositions.

Opportunities for editing and celebrating their writing reinforce their identity as real writers.

2. Helps children be knowledgeable about the writing process

The clear and repeated structure – Immerse, Analyse, Plan, Write, Edit – enables children to internalise each stage.

Teachers model the process explicitly, giving pupils the language and confidence to reflect on their own writing.

3. Helps teachers deliver quality writing instruction

Units are carefully sequenced, with progression in grammar, model texts, exemplar outcomes and assessment guidance.

There is a full suite of training materials, including instructional videos, to enable all staff to become confident and skilled teachers of writing.

Subject knowledge is embedded through teacher notes, supporting confidence in writing craft and grammar.

Addressing the 2025 NLT report findings with effective writing strategies

4. Helps children feel positive about writing

Writing for real purposes and audiences builds engagement and motivation.

High-quality texts and rich stimuli make writing feel meaningful and enjoyable.

Classrooms foster a culture of celebration, not just correction.

5. Provides children with inspiring prompts for writing

Each unit is based on a rich and diverse text, filled with exciting themes, relatable characters and imaginative worlds.

Visuals, drama, vocabulary exploration and hooks are used to spark curiosity and inspire writing.

6. Allows them to be creative and have choice in their writing

Model texts provide support without limiting originality or personal response.

Children create characters, write from a range of perspectives and make real choices, developing their own author’s voice

7. Helps children become autonomous in their writing

Routines and consistent modelling lead to increased independence.

Sentence and grammar choices are taught explicitly so children can make purposeful decisions as writers.

8. Provides inspiring publishing and showcasing opportunities

Final outcomes are purposeful and ready to be shared – from letters and narratives to poetry and leaflets.

Schools often create class books, displays or even send writing to real audiences, helping pupils feel that their words matter.

Ready Steady Write supports children’s enjoyment and success in writing

In Summary

The 2025 NLT report outlines important challenges around children’s attitudes to writing. Ready Steady Write directly supports schools in tackling these issues – helping children enjoy writing, see themselves as writers and develop the knowledge, skills and independence they need to succeed.

We are proud to support hundreds of schools in delivering writing that is purposeful, joyful and inclusive.

What Schools Are Saying
“Thanks to Ready Steady Write’s repetition and daily structure, our lowest 20% are making the progress we wanted. As SLT, we now know that every cohort experiences a robust and steady curriculum. It has given us confidence and clarity across year groups.”
– C. Dootson, Deputy Headteacher, Feniscowles Primary School, Blackburn

“The proof of the success is in the outcomes we are seeing for our disadvantaged learners. The scaffolding that the resources provide gives these children an additional advantage. These resources support staff in raising their expectations of all children and have raised engagement levels considerably in reading and writing. Thank you, Literacy Counts.”
– A. Gibbons, Headteacher, Mill View Primary School, Cheshire

Would you like to explore Ready Steady Write in more depth or discuss training opportunities for your team?

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