Story Valley

From 2020 to 2023, Nottingham City of Literature was part of Story Valley, an international project which worked with partners across Vocational Education and Training (VET) schools and colleges, cultural education organisations and the Cities of Literature network. Our aim was to get students engaged in literacy and language learning through different forms of creative storytelling, drawing on their existing interests and skills they are developing through their studies.

Story Valley aims to improve students’ skills and confidence across five key target areas. These are:

• Literacy and language skills – helping students to improve their skills across any language(s) spoken by them, their classmates or their local community.
• Oral history – giving students an opportunity to explore local history, migrant stories, and tales from around the world.
• Creativity – inspiring students to expand their creative skillset.
• Integration and collaboration – encouraging students to work collaboratively with their peers and international partners, increasing their understanding of different cultural backgrounds.
• Engagement – promoting students’ engagement with education.

The project also aims to support teachers across the following three areas: 

• Achieving student outcomes – developing confidence in delivering a programme spanning literacy, oral history, creativity, integration and collaboration, and expanding their own knowledge.
• Helpful resources – having access to a set of useful resources which can be successfully integrated into their existing curriculum.
• Connection to Story Valley network – connecting to an interdisciplinary network of teachers delivering Story Valley across the individual school or college, as well as the wider Story Valley network.
  

Project background

Literacy and multilingualism are essential skills within the modern workplace and wider society. However, too often, young people leave education and enter employment lacking these foundational skills. A 2012 report by the European Commission found that one in five European 15-year-olds do not have the necessary literacy skills to succeed in modern society.

Between 2021 and 2023, Story Valley pilots took place in four UNESCO Cities of Literature across Europe: Edinburgh, Leeuwarden, Ljubljana, and Nottingham. Partner organisations in VET (Vocational Education and Training) were given autonomy and support in designing and running a Story Valley project that met the needs of their students and region.

Story Valley had three major outputs, which you can access below.

What’s next?

Story Valley 2.0 is now live!

Following a successful trial we are looking to support 3 new schools/ colleges to run a Story Valley programme. A £1000 activation grant, resources and CPD are all available in the package. Applications are now live, visit the webpage for more information.