CHILDREN at a primary school in Winsford have helped make hospital stays more bearable for children thanks to a novel way of turning reading books into a fundraising drive.

Eager pupils at Oak View Academy linked up with charity Read for Good to earn sponsorship cash for reading as many books as they could in a fortnight.

The readathon has has raised £515 which will pay for brand new books and storyteller visits to be delivered to the UK’s major children’s hospitals, as well as supporting school libraries.

Deputy headteacher Charlotte Alford said: "This is a fantastic way to encourage reading for pleasure.

"Pupils were encouraged to choose to read whatever they love and that creates a brilliant buzz around books throughout the school.

"Focusing on reading for fun is a proven way of narrowing the attainment gap as we – like all schools – recover from lost teaching time.

"And we’re incredibly proud to play a part in bringing stories to children in hospital too!"

Read for Good is a children’s charity with the main mission of motivating, supporting and inspiring children to read for fun.

It partners with local charities as well as supporting all 30 of the UK’s major children’s hospitals via mobile bookcases and storytellers, and has donated £1m worth of books to school libraries since 2010.

Chief executive Justine Daniels said: "There’s a wealth of evidence that children who read for fun are more likely to thrive, socially and emotionally as well as academically.

"For some pupils a readathon is the spark that inspires a lifelong love of reading, while for many others it serves as a timely reminder, in a busy school day, of the joy to be had when you pick up a book."