National Numeracy Day Secondary toolkit

Welcome to your toolkit!

Thank you so much for supporting National Numeracy Day, 20 May 2026.

First up, a HUGE thank you for being part of National Numeracy Day! Your school’s involvement helps children build confidence with numbers and develop skills that will support brighter futures.

This toolkit makes it easy to celebrate your participation and spread the word across your school community. On this page, you’ll find everything you need to pick up and play National Numeracy Day in your school. We’ve kept it simple; no time-consuming prep required. Just choose your activities and get started.

There are ready-to-use resources, plus posters, letter templates and other promotional assets to help you involve parents, carers and colleagues. This toolkit will be continually updated throughout the coming months/weeks on the lead up to the big day.

Below, you’ll find:
(click on the name of each section to jump down the page)

• About National Numeracy Day
• About the theme: Count on Your Community
• The Number Heroes drawing competition
• The Big Number Natter
• Spread the word: communications assets
• Our social media accounts

Need the toolkit for Early Years & Primary, or supporting adults? Click here.

About National Numeracy Day

So, first things first, what’s it all about? National Numeracy Day is the UK’s only campaign dedicated to improving everyday maths. Each May, schools and organisations across the country come together to help children and adults feel more confident with numbers at school, at home and in the workplace.

The day shines a spotlight on the importance of numeracy and highlights free tools and resources that help children, families and staff take practical steps to build confidence and strengthen essential maths skills.

About the theme: Count on Your Community

This year, National Numeracy Day highlights the vital role communities play in building confidence with numbers.

Many children and adults across the UK struggle with numeracy and improving these skills can feel daunting to tackle alone. But with encouragement and support from teachers, classmates and families, positive change is possible.

Through Count on Your Community, we’re inviting schools to help create supportive environments where pupils can talk openly about numbers, feel safe making mistakes, and take small, meaningful steps together to build their confidence.

Find out more

Number Heroes Competition

This year our Number Heroes drawing competition returns with a brilliant brand-new theme: How do people use numbers in your neighbourhood, club or community?

We’re inviting children aged 3–13, as well as all children and young people in receipt of SEN support or an EHCP, to get creative and explore the real-life ways numbers are used all around them, from local shops and sports clubs to community groups and everyday heroes. It’s free to enter, packed with fantastic prizes for pupils and schools, and a brilliant way to spark conversations about how numbers matter in the world around us. Get ready to inspire your pupils to become our next Number Heroes!

The competition isn’t open yet, but you can already download the worksheet:

Download worksheet

The Big Number Natter

This activity is a way of sharing how we feel when it comes to maths and numbers. For those who struggle, this is a great first step towards feeling more confident. You can do this in small groups or whole classes, with students or staff, and they can be as formal or informal as you like.

Use our simple guide to plan your session, and the talking points to get conversations flowing.

Download the guide

Download the talking points