Let’s get number confident this National Numeracy Day

Taking place on 17 May, alongside the charity National Numeracy, the idea is to raise awareness of the importance of numbers in everyday life and to help children and adults feel confident about numbers at home, work and school.

As well as a host of free online resources and videos including inspirational stories and practical advice from real life learners and celebrities, council staff will be running activities across the county to talk about support available.

The Multiply team will be available at The Shires, Trowbridge on Wednesday 17 May between 10am to 2pm to offer advice about the Multiply scheme and how to access support in Wiltshire.

The scheme is targeted at adults (over 19 years of age) who do not currently have Level 2/GCSE maths at grade 4 (previously known as a C grade). People looking for help with their budgeting, spreadsheets or basic maths skills can all benefit from the latest free courses being offered. People can find out about the latest courses on offer by going to Multiply - Work Wiltshire.

Wiltshire libraries will be taking part in a Big Number Natter on National Numeracy Day, with multiple libraries (Salisbury, Melksham, Calne, Tidworth, Devizes and Chippenham) continuing their Number Natter throughout the week. Staff and customers alike will be asked to share their experiences of numeracy, whether they love it or loathe it and why. People will be encouraged to share their numeracy story and to think about how they use maths and numbers in their everyday lives.

Libraries will be running a number themed Rhyme Time over the week (15 – 21 May), with Salisbury, Melksham and Chippenham libraries also holding a number themed story time on Saturday 20 May at 11am.

Cllr Laura Mayes, Cabinet Member for Education and Skills said: “If the idea of maths fills you with dread, or you shy away from activities that involves maths, then talking to our teams about the Multiply programme or visiting the libraries for a Big Number Natter is a great way to take that first step to talking about and improving your numeracy.

“The Big Number Natter is a nationwide conversation to get everyone talking about numbers. Conversations can highlight how numbers matter in our lives from using for work, with managing money and helping children with homework. It is hoped that by talking about numbers, it can make them a little less scary.

“As per our business plan, we are using the available Multiply funding to work with Further Education providers to address skills gaps and to remove barriers and support residents to improve their confidence, knowledge and skills. With the Multiply scheme and support in our libraries, we offer a wide range of varied opportunities across the county to empower adults to improve their competence with numbers.”

Libraries across Wiltshire have a wide range of maths themed books, eBooks and audiobooks. These cover a range of topics such as money matters, help with sums and maths for beginners, as well as books for children to develop their own maths skills. Library staff can also help people to improve numeracy skills by supporting them to access the National Numeracy Challenge website. Find out more at Everyday maths - Wiltshire Council.

Further information on the Multiply scheme, and the courses offered is found workwiltshire.co.uk/multiply