WELCOME TO GREAT READING
Great Reading was set up by Rachel Busby in 2017. Rachel grew up in the West Country and graduated from Nottingham University with a degree in Industrial Economics. Realising a passion for working with young children Rachel trained as a teacher and has worked in education for over 20 years including as a deputy head teacher in a large SW London primary school.
After teaching extensively in Early Years and Key Stage 1 (KS1), Rachel began to specialise in early reading and phonics. She combined her passion for language alongside her skills as a specialist reading teacher and established a structured approach to teaching reading and phonics within Early Years, KS1 and into KS2.
Ultimately Rachel led the training and development of a team of over 20 teachers and teaching assistants, with a careful focus on the lowest achieving children, including some whose first language was not English.
Rachel’s holistic approach to developing the literacy of young children focuses on the importance of strong partnerships with parents. She has also worked closely with educational psychologists, speech and language specialists and literacy support teachers.
The success of the structure established by Rachel led to substantial improvements at the school. These accomplishments were recognised specifically by OFSTED and the Department for Education.
Rachel has been a leading teacher and worked on a phonics programme across Wandsworth, providing the benefit of her expertise and support to other schools looking to improve their provision of early literacy.
She also works closely with several English Hubs supporting auditing and training schools throughout the country. During the Covid 19 pandemic lockdown Rachel worked with the DfE and other early reading experts and teachers to develop and produce a series of home learning phonics videos which were watched by thousands of children. Following the success of this project she was asked to work on the development of the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised phonics programme. Rachel was instrumental in designing the training for the programme and continues to work with schools across the UK.
OUR VALUES
- Fun & Positivity
- Patience & Empathy
- Dedication & Collaboration
- Individuality
- SUCCESS – Every Child Can be a Reader