School catch-up: key questions

A recent Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) report warned that many disadvantaged children were doing little if no education while schools were closed to most pupils during lockdown, and that the loss of learning could wipe out gains made over the past decade in narrowing the attainment gap.

The government responded by offering disadvantaged pupils tuition worth £350m during the 2020/21 academic year as part of a “catch up” package of support that includes £650m for schools to set up tuition groups to provide extra help.

The National Tutoring Programme (NTP) aims to accelerate pupils’ academic progress and help prevent the attainment gap between disadvantaged and affluent children widening further.

What is in the programme?

The NTP is an initiative to support schools to address the impact of school closures on pupils’ learning.

From autumn 2020, the NTP will fund small-group tuition in maintained primary, secondary and special schools, providing additional support to help pupils who have missed out the most as a result of school closures. The focus will be on disadvantaged pupils eligible for the pupil premium, however teachers and school leaders will be able to determine if tutoring is the right support for each pupil.

How will it work?

There are two pillars to the NTP:

• NTP Partners: Schools will be able to access subsided tutoring from an approved list of tuition partners to reach disadvantaged pupils. Partner organisations could be charities and agencies working with schools. Pupils could receive an hour of tutoring a week for 12 to 15 weeks.
• NTP Coaches: Trained graduates will be employed by schools in the most disadvantaged areas to provide catch-up support, allowing teachers to focus on their classrooms. Guided by quality standards and criteria to target support to the most disadvantaged pupils, schools will decide which approach best fits their needs, which tuition partners to work with and which pupils will benefit most.
  
  

Who is involved?

The Department for Education is funding the programme, which has been created through a collaboration between four charities – the EEF, Sutton Trust, Impetus and Nesta.

The EEF says NTP coaches are likely to be mostly graduates with some experience in education or working with pupils. They will not all be qualified teachers, but may be working towards an initial teacher training qualification.

Why is tutoring the focus?

The EEF says there is evidence demonstrating the potential of one-to-one and small-group tuition as a cost-effective way to support pupils who are falling behind. The Sutton Trust-EEF Teaching and Learning Toolkit suggests it can boost progress by up to five months. Randomised controlled trials funded by the EEF have also found positive effects for a range of tuition models.

However, it is estimated that just one in five disadvantaged pupils has access to quality tuition.

Will the DfE pay all the cost?

No, the DfE is funding 75 per cent of the cost, with schools expected to contribute the remainder – for example, a school would pay £12 towards the £50 cost for a tutor.

However, the EEF says schools can use additional DfE catch-up money to pay for the remainder.

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WEST LONDON ZONE CHIEF BACKS TUITION CATCH-UP SCHEME, BUT WARNS SOME CHILDREN WILL NEED HOLISTIC SUPPORT TOO

Charity West London Zone (WLZ) has been supporting disadvantaged children in deprived areas for four years. From September, its link workers will be in 38 locations – nurseries, primary and secondary schools, and colleges – across four west London boroughs providing holistic support tailored to the needs of the child and their family.

WLZ chief executive Louisa Mitchell explains this holistic approach has been developed because some disadvantaged children struggle to engage with formal learning. While supportive of the government-funded NTP, she says it may not work for all pupils.

“Some schools think tutors will be helpful, others say they don’t want them because they won’t know the children,” explains Mitchell. “We’re deeply worried about the attainment gap, but it’s got to be addressed at the right time.

“Our schools are saying we need to focus 100 per cent on getting these [vulnerable] children back into school in September. Some children and parents are anxious about returning.”

Last year, WLZ worked with nearly 900 children aged three to 18, with link workers supporting about 40 children each. The intensive two-year programme targets progress in all aspects of a child’s life – wellbeing, confidence, relationships and academic achievement. A personalised plan means their support is tailored to their unique strengths and goals.

“Our link workers know the children really well,” says Mitchell. “They work with them and their families to get them into school.

“When schools restart, children are going to need these deep relationships. Some will need to be worked with through a trauma-informed approach to help them sit still in class, listen to the teacher and be comfortable being back with their peers.”

Fun activities like play therapy and drama workshops will be important in rebuilding pupils’ confidence in learning, explains Mitchell, who says schools should be given flexibility to invest the catch-up funding in a range of support.

“Some of the most vulnerable children will need that to encourage them back into school,” she adds.