Learn about oracy

Learn about Voice 21 Oracy Schools

PRUs and Voice 21

Become a Voice 21 Oracy School

 Becoming a Voice 21 Oracy School is a commitment: to transform oracy teaching and learning across your school, enabling all students to access and benefit from a high-quality oracy education.

Through establishing a whole-school commitment to oracy, teachers and school leaders are empowered, passionate and motivated to ensure that the voice of all students is valued in school and beyond.

We are proud to work with over 600 schools across our national network all committed to delivering a high-quality oracy education for their students.

The case for oracy

While schools devote hundreds of hours of teaching time and expertise to the development of pupils’ writing and reading skills, barely any time is spent developing the vital verbal communication skills students need to succeed in work and life.  

On entry to school, disadvantaged children’s spoken language development is significantly lower than their more advantaged peers and these gaps grow throughout school widening to a five years’ difference by the age of 14.

Evidence shows that a high-quality education can: Improve academic outcomes, improve literacy development, increase confidence and wellbeing, equip students to thrive in life beyond school and shrink the language gap.

Learn more about the importance of oracy

Lydia Frater, Head of Oracy

Mossbourne Victoria Park Academy

It’s given me the confidence to go: you know other people are doing this, I don’t have to sneak oracy in the back door, but we can demand that it is part of the curriculum, that is becoming part of a wider educational dialogue very very quickly

Gillian Russell

Coppice Primary School

It was an inspiring experience, which I have absolutely no doubt, has changed the life chances of many pupils at Coppice Primary School.

Julie Gibson

Park View School

For me, at the centre is the belief that we all have something worth saying. To develop oracy is to develop individuals who know and understand their own worth and that of others, to create collaborative and empathetic individuals who understand and invest in the importance of community and who can use their voices for the good of themselves and others.

Nicky Pear

Cubitt Town Junior School

The training has been consistently excellent and has given me the tools and confidence to lead oracy across my school. We also worked with Voice 21 for a full academic year at school, and they tailored their input and training to our specific needs. Again, all of this was well planned, thorough and helpful.

Transform your teaching and learning with Voice 21

© 2022 Voice 21. Voice 21 is a registered charity in England and Wales. Charity number 1152672 | Company no. 08165798