Championing Effective
Reading Instruction
for All
Championing Effective Reading Instruction for All
What is the RRF?
Our website offers valuable resources for anyone interested in effective reading instruction, including educators, parents, and policymakers.
Our members come from a variety of backgrounds and experiences, all united by evidence that systematic synthetic phonics (SSP) is the most effective method for teaching fundamental reading skills. This approach has been proven highly successful in helping learners of all abilities achieve reading proficiency.
History of the RRF
Later, Debbie Hepplewhite and her husband, David, created a RRF website and worked tirelessly to maintain it. New members joined and the RRF published newsletters, created an active forum and organised several conferences.
As a result, the RRF was able to influence government policy for the teaching of reading in England. Since 2014 all local-authority-maintained schools in England are required to use SSP for the initial teaching of reading, due partly to the RRF. This achievement marks a significant milestone in our mission to promote effective, evidence-based instruction.
In 2024, the RRF gained charity status, with the aim of improving the teaching of reading by providing relevant information. In 2025 a new website was published.
The Ongoing Challenge
Despite our progress, there is still much work to be done. Around the world, many educators and policymakers lack a clear understanding of SSP, resulting in the continued promotion of ineffective and contradictory methods.
In England, many literacy and intervention programmes rely on outdated practices that perpetuate confusion and hinder student progress, particularly for struggling readers.
We aim to bridge this gap by promoting evidence-based methods to ensure all learners receive the instruction they need to succeed.
Teaching Reading Effectively
The method used to teach children to read is crucial to their success. All children, whether they find reading easy or difficult, need explicit instruction to understand the alphabetic code and develop the core skill of blending – or ‘synthesising’ – sounds to read words. Research has shown that systematic synthetic phonics is highly effective in developing these fundamental skills.
Unfortunately, for too long, the teaching of reading has been influenced by methods that encourage memorising whole words, guessing from context, and incidental phonics instruction, often referred to as ‘balanced literacy.’ These approaches, despite lacking scientific validity, have often led to the rejection of systematic phonics instruction. The RRF challenges these outdated methods and advocates for explicit, systematic phonics teaching—a practice that is now recognised in England and increasingly in other English-speaking countries.
We acknowledge that reading involves more than simply decoding words, but the ability to read words is the foundation of reading comprehension. Nearly all reading difficulties stem from poor letter-sound knowledge and an inability to decode words through blending. Our primary mission is to ensure these core skills are firmly in place.
We also understand the importance of writing in supporting reading development. Writing is the reverse of reading, and SSP instruction includes teaching phonemic awareness, spelling, and letter formation—skills that are critical for writing and reinforce the reading process.
Our Commitment
The RRF is committed to promoting the most effective evidence-based methods for teaching reading and writing. We believe every learner, regardless of their background, deserves the best possible start in their literacy journey.
Through ongoing advocacy, the provision of relevant information, and continuous support, we aim to make a lasting impact on reading education both in the UK and worldwide.
News & Discussion
The Joy of Reading and the Scandal of Child Illiteracy
Children should experience stories, books and literature as early as possible. When they cannot yet read words easily and independently, they delight in having stories read aloud to them – it is simply the best way for them to enjoy literature at this...
Empowering Children with SEND to Read Well
“Does anyone know of any effective interventions for children who cannot decode?” Here is Carl Pattison’s response to this common question:
Reading Together
Books are magical: they hook us in with their power. The power of questions; the power of not wanting the book to end; the power of creating unique pictures that will always be better than watching the movie; the power of learning about our world through distant...