By Anna Russell, Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability Director, Bupa Global & UK and Bupa Foundation Director

Chapter 1
An idea is born

Once upon a time, in the midst of the Covid pandemic, some people from the Bupa Foundation, Bupa and the National Literacy Trust were dreaming of better days ahead.

In this dream was a vision… a vision to doing something positive for the local community’s wellbeing after such a hard time for all. A vision to create a community experience that would make people happy and inspire children and families to read, get out and about, connecting with their local community.

And so, the dream of a book bench trail was born.

 

Chapter 2
Why a book bench trail

Books are so much more than words on a page.

They’re an escape, a refuge, a sanctuary.

They’re a way to relax, a way to process and understand how we’re feeling.

Books can make us happy, make us feel better.

And books inspire our dreams, so we can be our best.

We wanted to bring together the positive power of reading with the positive power of getting outside, being active and connecting with our community.

A simple but powerful way for people in Salford to find their happy.

 

Chapter 3
Why this cause so close to our heart

The pandemic has been tough on everyone, and our children have missed out on so much.

Here at the Bupa Foundation we champion better mental health and are passionate about supporting children’s wellbeing. We’re happy that the funds raised from this project will help the National Literacy Trust support thousands of children in Greater Manchester to improve their literacy so that the magic of reading will always be there for them.

And we’re happy that we’re providing thousands of copies of Emily Coxhead’s gorgeous new book “Find Your Happy” to local schools so even more children can find their own happy, perhaps inside the pages of a good book.