How to review your English, literacy and reading policy

Find out what questions you can ask, and what to look for, to review your school's English, literacy and reading policy with confidence. Use our model policy to see what good looks like, and see examples from other schools.

Updated
on 17 September 2024
See updates
School types: AllSchool phases: AllRef: 41337
Contents
  1. Key facts
  2. Key points to look out for
  3. 3 key questions to challenge the policy
  4. Model policy
  5. Examples from primary schools

Key points to look out for

Below we suggest what might be included in an English/literacy policy but, since it’s not statutory, policies can vary.

It’s not meant as a guide for writing a policy, since that’s your school leaders’ job, but use it to give you a sense of what you’re looking for when reviewing it.

Vision and guiding principles

This is where your school leaders set out what they want pupils to achieve before they leave your school. This might include:

  • Having a positive attitude towards reading and enjoying reading for pleasure
  • Being able to write clearly and accurately
  • Having a wide vocabulary

Your policy might also include some guiding principles to help achieve these aims, such as identifying learning gaps or exposing pupils to different types of reading materials.

Roles and responsibilities

The headteacher: providing the resources and training to enable teaching staff to deliver the curriculum Subject lead: leading and managing