A student about to go to Oxford to study English will return to her school to encourage children to read books outside of the national curriculum.

Felistas Ndebele, of Acacia Road, Walthamstow, moved to the country from South Africa when she was just five-years-old and unable to understand the English language.

At school she found it isolating as she was only able to utter short phrases like ‘hello children’, and couldn’t understand TV shows that other kids were talking about in the playground.

Her parents encouraged her to read to help her grasp the language.

A year later she had the reading age of an 11-year-old and now having finished a degree in English at Nottingham Trent University is heading to Oxford to continue to follow her passion.

The project, funded by vInspired, a youth volunteering charity, will see Ms Ndebele return to Holy Family Catholic School in Shernhall Street this month to introduce children to concepts, such as post-colonialism, feminism and marxism in the hope that children find the authors more relatable.

The 20-year-old said: “I believe it is important for me to return to my old school because without their support there is no doubt I would not be where I am today.

“I think often the children in school take that for granted, and I am hoping coming back as an ex-student to highlight to them that they can also be very academically successful with the same support.

“I have always loved reading, studying English has not only improved my communication skills but in general has made me more culturally aware, something necessary in the diverse world we live in.

“I am especially looking forward to teaching Second Class Citizen by Buchi Emecheta, it’s a great novella about African motherhood in Britain which differs to much of what is taught in the curriculum.

“Literacy has the power to change education completely, we are hoping to show children that literature is mixed in gender, race, culture and class just as our area is."

Her project, supported by friend Kalm Christian of Billet Road, Walthamstow will take place between July 14 and 16 with children who will voluntarily sign up next week.