Venning joins TRA in new impact research role

Laura Venning joining The Reading Agency in the newly created role of impact research manager.

Venning will lead on developing a framework to help the charity assess the impact of reading for pleasure and reading for information, in a post funded by the Peter Sowerby Foundation.

Venning comes to The Reading Agency from Booktrust, where she has been leading their work to provide evidence about the impact of their programmes.

Sue Wilkinson, c.e.o. at The Reading Agency said: “We are delighted that Laura is joining The Reading Agency to lead the development of this ambitious programme. We hope that it will have a significant impact, both on our own work and, by being developed in partnership with others, on the work of the wider sector.”

The charity's director of research Debbie Hicks added: “Research into the impact of reading has been dominated by case studies and outputs, and by what is happening in schools and formal education. These tend not to make links to reading for pleasure outside the classroom and the difference that this can make to people’s reading skills and enjoyment of reading. Laura will help us work with partners to develop a more rigorous evaluation model, which we hope will be useful across the sector.”