What people think

No I haven't lost my Letterbox club card. I am just writing to you to inform you that I am very grateful for all the lovely books and games I have received over the last two months. I am very much looking forwrd to my July parcel books games and wristband I shall get. Once again, many thanks, Maggie

Thank you for the things you got me they were lovely. I ame excited for my next parcel. Yours Sincerely Jennifer

Dear Letterbox. Thank you for the stuff you gave us. We might play and draw for a week. From Letitia

Thank You from John

Just to say thank you for the gifts. I like the books. From Lolly

Thank you for the lovely books and the board game. A big thank you for letting me have my own Letterbox card. I really love the money game but this tem my mum won it. Best wishes Jordan

Thanks a bunch!

Me and my brother really liked Letterbox Club because they included very good books and maths games. The anticipation was very annoying and frustrating. My brother also enjoyed the books and he liked the stationary as well.

PS It would be nice if could include popular online cartoon character books and lego

Thank you for my parcel. From Luke

I am writing to thank you for my Letterbox parcels. I enjoyed the games and I really enjoyed the book called The Two Jacks. From Andrew

Dear Letterbox Club, thank you for the package I love it. See you soon. Bye

Thank you next time if your can I have a David Attenborough book about animals. Sorry about the spelling mistakes from Thierry.

To Letterbox thank you for my pack from Troy.

Bobby is really grateful for you sending those things. Bobby has told me to write that and this is from him. Thank you from Bobby and Tommy.

thank you for my letter box parcel I enjoyed my parcel very much and look forward to my next one.

The items you get help with: school, reading, gaming and a lot of other things as well.

I think they are really fun.

I enjoyed receiving the parcels and looked forward to them coming.

I thought it was really exciting getting parcels addressed to me.

If there is any more for my age and older I would love to continue to have them. As you get awesome books and pens. P.S I like the Guinness World Records 2014 book. It’s awesome!”

Dear Letterbox Club, Thanks for the parcel I thought it and everything inside it was great. I enjoyed the books too. Thanks again....

I can now write poems because I read what other children had done and thought I can do that to.

Thank you so much for my parcels I like them very much, my carer helps me to read the books and I play the games with my friends.  I find all the contents interesting, stimulating and I have lots of fun.  Once again thank you so much, lots of Love’  (Age 12 – Yellow.  Written with foster carer)

Thank you for my Letterbox Parcels, my favourite is The High Street Book’ (Age 7 – Blue)

Thank you for all the wonderful gifts, I now know that its not all bad in care and I love reading so all the books come in handy (age 9 – Red)

Thank you for all I get sent, I don’t usually enjoy reading but this month I got sent a book, it is called Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney.  So far I am up to page 79 and am hoping to finish the book soon (Age 13 – green)

I have got my June Letterbox Club parcel and have read the books and I drew some pictures...Thank you for this package and thank you for the maths games, as I am not particularly good at maths, but I like literacy and reading and, Jaqueline, you are one of my best authors, I have read lots of your books including The Story of Tracy Baeker and its really well written, although I have not read The Worry Website yet, I know its going to be great as all of your books are. I have read your letter and I enjoyed that too.

I thought WOW when I got the parcel because I have never ever had a package or a parcel in my entire life I am 10 years old

I think it's great!

To the letterbox club

thank you very very much for sending me everything. I have lots of fun with the percels you send for me. My favourite thing that you have sent me, is my wheres wolly book.

Thanks for sending us the Goodies.

i especially like the book about bats and humans.

Dear Alice Galvin

Thank you for the parcel. Plese can you keep sending thems. I can stay happy ever after.

Thack you

Thank you very much for the letter box parcel. I loved the stuff inside. I am really looking forward to the next parcel.

Yours faithfully

Dear

Thankyou for the books and the pens it is very nice to give me that,

thank you lov my suth sowe. I want you to you to now that. I am happy to beiy in yore club. June 2009

I'd never heard of letter box club until I discovered a brightly coloured package full of amazing books and activities which landed on the doormat at my work and addressed to one of the children I look after. The pack was received by the young man with a huge grin on his face and he really is proud as punch with his new story and activity books. I certainly look forward to seeing what arrives in his future packs.

Thank you for Luke's parcel. He really enjoyed using the colouring pens and he drew a beautiful car.

She loved all the books and read them straight away. It encouraged her to look at books she wouldn’t normally choose, and realise that factual books are really interesting.

He hasn’t had much experience of owning or enjoying books and the scheme has certainly improved his confidence in reading.

[Name] looked forward each month to these parcels and eagerly checked the post during the last week of each month. The contents were then strewn across the lounge and showed to everyone who visited. This is great initiative and must be continued.

He looked forward to the parcels and felt he was valued. Was amazed at the fact that people he didn’t know would spend so much money on books for him.

The receipt of these letterbox parcels has been looked forward eagerly by [name]. She seldom gets any mail or any presents from anyone so these were a welcome addition.
 

He felt special and it was positively received. He had very little belongings of his own and values greatly things he is able to keep.

Keeli is so enjoying it all. Books are her favourite particularly Kechup On Your Cornflakes. The whole package has opened up a fun way to learn. it has enhanced her colour and number matching, skills like cutting sorting writing. A great package. Hope this will count as positive feed back.

The book choices were excellent…The Manga drawing book inspired her so much that she has joined a Manga drawing class. I just can`t thank you enough for allowing J. this wonderful opportunity.

She has improved no end with her reading. She now reads 3 books at a time and understands each story.

It was great when The Hunger Games arrived! I had been encouraging her to read it without success. She has now read the trilogy.

She reads the books to her younger sisters and shares them with her friends.

J. loved the books; she discovered the reading bug this year.

Callum is really excited when his parcel arrives, and is keen to read and do activities.  Callum is now a member of Ellesmere Port library and currently has three books on loan.

Ryan loves getting the parcels, rips them open and ‘tucks straight in’.  He loves the books (devours them) and stationery packs – it’s rare for Ryan to spontaneously write or draw, but he has done with the Letterbox exercise books and pens. He’s particularly keen on keeping them together in the plastic wallets.

I am the foster carer for Janet, 10, and I felt that I should write to say how great the Letterbox packs have been. After the first pack, Janet started to anticipate with pleasure the arrival of the next one and she has made really good use of all that has been in them.

As a teacher (who is just completing a Master’s dissertation in Children’s Literature!) I fully appreciate the value of reading and I, too, have been delighted with the range of material that has been sent.

As an ex-primary teacher who ordered the school's books, I was both surprised and impressed by your lovely, well thought out book packages, especially as you are catering for such a wide range of children. Well done. This project must be one of the best things social services has done since I have been fostering!

The variety of books and games has helped my foster son to enjoy and respect books. We have great fun reading and playing as a family.

Lottie has all the books on show in her room. We both enjoy reading and playing the games. She loves reading in bed, it helps her drift off to sleep. She keeps her books close to the bed.

Andy loves the stories that are funny and he enjoys the extra things in the pack, like pens and note books. It helped us do more with him - the maths games were great.

He read a lot anyway but it gave him more choice of books to read... storybooks and fact books.

The Letterbox Club has helped me do more with Susan. We play the maths games and use the books on a daily basis for paired reading. Books can be expensive, so we really appreciate the Letterbox Club/

The Youngsters’ faces light up when they receive the parcels! Long may it continue!

I just want to pass on two children’s feedback to you. One child, who had the Year Three pack two years ago, showed me all of her books, beautifully arranged in her bookcase. She said that it was Letterbox Club that ‘got her into reading‘ Jacqueline Wilson.

The other girl said that she loved being part of Letterbox: she had received it in Year Three and is now receiving the Year 5 pack. She loves the plastic folders with zips as she enjoys doing projects: she said that there is a good choice of books and her carer is impressed with the quality: she loves getting the stickers: Letterbox Club makes her feel ‘special’: she likes the postcards. She says that there are no negatives!

The children told us that they really love having the parcels delivered and one young boy in particular told me he uses everything for school from the pens to the plastic wallet and enjoys playing the money games at home!

Just to say how much we have appreciated Letterbox. Our numbers of children in care of primary age have risen steadily and knowing that we can rely on Letterbox as a resource has been very reassuring.

I have had some really positive feedback about the Letterbox parcels. The young people I work with often ask, 'When’s the next one coming?!'.

Last week, I gave a parcel to a child who had just had contact, so he was quieter and more dejected than usual. The parcel really made him smile and he loved everything he got. Normally he has a lot of difficulty sitting still while I read to him but he happily sat for the whole hour, colouring in his new notebook (with new felt pens), then begged me to stay an extra 20 minutes to read The High Street with him.

Carers said how much the children loved getting the parcels and the books always got put in pride of place, neatly on the shelves.

I know that young people who are part of the Letterbox Club in South Gloucestershire now and in the past have gained and continue to gain so much more than could ever be given monetary value.

I wish Letterbox Club continued success. All the young people I have heard from have really enjoyed receiving their parcels and a lot of the adults that have seen the parcels going out wish there was a similar scheme for adults!

A very simple idea, executed imaginitively and making best use of slender resources.

Access to the fun and inspiring educational materials that the Letterbox Club sends is helping young fostered children to meet their potential at a key stage in their development.

The Siobhan Dowd Trust is delighted to be working with The Letterbox Club. From the moment we became aware of it, we knew that it was exactly the kind of initiative we wanted to support, and it’s also clear that it has a proven track record of success. This kind of support for looked after children is even more important in these times of spending cuts, and we look forward to a long relationship with the Letterbox Club.

We know that all too often children in care struggle in school and fall behind their peers in terms of academic achievement. Access to the fun and inspiring materials that the Letterbox Club sends out is helping young fostered children to meet their potential at a key stage in their development.

Undoubtedly, these parcels have been an amazing resource for our LAC. We've had our best response ever from our young people this year. They seem to be so proud and excited about receiving these packages through the post... Thanks again for providing such an excellent child-centred resource.

We are delighted to be able to work with Booktrust to give fostered children this chance to boost their reading and writing skills. Too often they fall behind at school and don't have the access they need to extra support and opportunities. This scheme goes some way to giving them the same chances as other children when it comes to reading and writing.

I really think it's a fantastic and incredibly valuable scheme which offers something hugely positive to some of our most vulnerable children. A huge thank you to you for all your support, you've been so helpful making sure everything runs smoothly here.

I went to a PEP this week for a Year 6 girl. I couldn't resist telling you how excited she was to get a letter from Jacqueline Wilson. She thought Jacqueline had written personally to her so was just so happy. If you get the chance to pass that on then I hope it can make Jacqueline's day too.

I just wanted to say thank you to all at Letterbox for the new parcel arrangements. It has certainly made life a lot easier for me.

We were having a look at the parcel contents and were very pleased with it. We're sure our children in care will be really happy when they receive these parcels too. Thank you and all the other people who have put the effort into doing this.

The books are so wonderful - I am going to re-read some of them before they are sent out. Our Library Service is getting very excited about this project and they are going to get extra copies of the Letterbox book authors so that the young people can continue their interest, as well as running events for them.

I visited a child today who has completed an evaluation on her own. When I asked if she could recommend any improvements to the Letterbox Club, she replied: 'Yes, it should go on until you are 12 years old.' She was a Year 3 child!

I have been sending out the feedback forms on the Letterbox parcels and have had very positive replies, including one today saying that the child 'thoroughly loved' getting the parcels; the carers enjoyed sharing them with him and referred to it as an AMAZING scheme.

My manager said yes to signing up for 2011 without any hesitation as we feel it has had a fantastic effect on the literacy and numeracy levels of our LAC and personally is one of my favourite projects to be involved in.

I’m incredibly proud to be a Patron of the Letterbox Club. It’s wonderful that looked-after children can receive crucial support through their special book and maths parcels, delivered once a month. I’m particularly pleased that there are now parcels containing a delightful book selection for older children aged 11-13 and know it will be much appreciated.

I have seen this project go from strength to strength. I've seen the delight on the faces of the children, opening their colourful packages. I've seen them play the games with friends and carers, listen to the books, read the books and talk with great enthusiasm about the joy of being a member of the Letterbox Club.

The Letterbox Club is a great idea. Every child in care deserves to receive books. That the books come through the post in an envelope addressed to the individual child is just the best! I wish The Letterbox Club had been around for the hundreds of young people that I came across when I was in care.

I think the Letterbox Club is such an exciting and worthwhile project. It’s great that looked-after children get their own special parcel of books and stationery and stickers. It’s like a little birthday present every month. I’m delighted to be involved - I think it’s a wonderful way of introducing children to the joys of reading.

I'm delighted to be a patron of the Letterbox Club in Northern Ireland. I've seen for myself the excitement the children get on receiving their parcels. We've met up on Fostering Achievement Fun Days in Belfast and Omagh, where I've had great fun chatting to them, reading them my stories and even dancing with them. The Letterbox Club is doing fantastic work and I hope it goes from strength to strength.

A great notion and I am glad to be part of it.

We are delighted to have found the Letterbox Club, which is a very special programme. We believe that providing a child with access to books is one of the best starts you can give them in life so it is a real privilege to share the joy of reading with children in foster families around the UK.

All of us working at Penguin believe passionately in the transforming power of books in people’s lives. Hearing first hand from Rose gave us a way of putting that belief into action in a really practical way.

The Department was very impressed with the scheme which was why we funded the expansion of the initial pilot and we are delighted that this scheme has now expanded into the secondary phase with the recent launch of Letterbox Green (for those aged 11-13)

The main purpose of the Letterbox pilot project was to trial a new way of improving the educational outlook for children, by providing children in care in primaries four and six with educational materials. Improving outcomes for young people in care is extremely important. Developing their education will not only give them the opportunity to gain the skills and qualifications they need but will also give them the confidence to strive further.

...we are showing our commitment to improving the basic literacy and numeracy skills of babies, children and their families.

The Letterbox Club continues these positive messages to some of the more vulnerable children in Wales. By providing looked after children aged 7-13 with a pack of books, mathematics activities and education materials every month for six months they are helping to improve their educational prospects.

Helping young fostered children to meet their potential at a key stage in their development.

Encouraging youngsters to enjoy reading introduces them to a lifelong pleasure. It also plays an important part in raising their attainment, which we as a council have made a key priority. It is particularly vital that the attainment and achievement of looked-after youngsters is raised and so the Letterbox Club is a fantastic addition to the other work we are doing to help ensure children and young people in our care have better life chances.