It’s been 115 years since the first International Women’s Day in 1911 and since then much has been achieved in the field of gender equality, but there is still more work to do.
“Give To Gain” and “Count On Your Community” work perfectly alongside each other – giving time, support and opportunities within a community means there is plenty to gain, whether that be in terms of understanding money matters, embarking on a new career path or just getting on better with numbers at home and work. It all makes a difference.
Why do we need number confidence within UK communities?
Around half the working-age population has the expected numeracy level of a primary school child and millions struggle with everyday maths.
Low numeracy can leave people more vulnerable to debt, unemployment and fraud and put people off applying for certain jobs.
Also, we know from research that generally, women and girls are less likely to feel confident with numbers. Two years ago on International Women’s Day, National Numeracy and a pioneering group of organisations came together to address the UK’s gender number confidence gap, with the launch of the Gender Taskforce.
These are issues which can be addressed through community outreach. Whatever community looks like to you, be it a friendship group, book club, sports club, faith group, education setting or even an online community, we can all benefit from improving our number confidence and skills.
This National Numeracy Day, giving time towards organising and attending community events could give you and others the chance to gain an insight into how your community could benefit from improved number confidence.
How can I help boost numeracy in my community?
National Numeracy Day has plenty of free resources and activities aimed at supporting communities – sign up for access and to receive updates in the lead up to the campaign.
The Big Number Natter is a great way to get people within your community started with improving their everyday maths. It’s simple, all you need to do is talk!
By giving encouragement to people to open up about their feelings about maths, we gain an insight into the bigger picture – love it or loathe it, we all have something to say about maths and however you feel, you may be surprised to learn that others feel the same.
National Numeracy Ambassadors Rachel Riley, Iona Bain and Katya Jones have already taken part, as has fellow Ambassador Denise Welch and her Loose Women co-star Ruth Langsford.
You could also suggest our free website, the National Numeracy Challenge, to your community members. It’s full of everyday maths questions as well as helpful learning resources.
Giving people a safe space for conversation where they won’t be judged will help them gain confidence to open up about their maths journeys and identify areas where they could improve.
Empower your community this National Numeracy Day
Sign up to National Numeracy Day for free resources and activities to help you and your community improve numeracy, this year and beyond!
You’d be in great company – our celebrity Ambassadors, schools and organisations around the country will be taking part too.
Talking about local issues together could help people start to feel more confident with the numbers used in work and life, which could even support social mobility in your area by starting a journey towards career progression or better money management.
If we all give support to each other, there’ll be plenty to gain when it comes to number confidence and skills, including within our communities, where the potential for new opportunities is vast.
Picture credit: Jovie Pujadas Ladura, Pexels
