Online classes get young people back to learning

Project: Cloud 22

Purpose: To provide online schooling to persistently absent secondary-age pupils

Funding: Norfolk County Council funds each child’s place. The figure varies depending on need and length of enrolment. In 2021/22 the authority provided an average of around £13,000 per student per year

Background

Charity Catch22 runs Include Norfolk, alternative education provision that supports students in the county whose needs cannot be met in mainstream schools. These include children with social, emotional or mental health challenges.

When schools closed during the Covid-19 pandemic and teachers began delivering lessons online, the charity realised the virtual approach was re-engaging some persistent non-attenders and “hard-to-reach” learners.

It went on to launch bespoke virtual provision – Cloud 22 – in December 2022. This initially offered full-time, live online lessons to six students. Since then it has supported 65 young people with 22 pupils currently enrolled.

Action

Cloud 22 students log on to their lessons from home at 9.15am. There are two classes: a year 10 group currently made up of eight pupils and year 11 group with 14 pupils. One teacher and one teaching assistant lead each class.

Some of the children attending Cloud 22 originally received on-site provision at Include Norfolk. Others are referred to the service by the local authority.

The teachers deliver two learning pathways: GCSEs in English, maths and science, or functional skills, a vocational pathway that covers English, maths, digital skills and an entry-level certificate in science. Pupils can do one pathway or both. Currently, eight students are doing both.

Functional skills qualifications can be a fall-back if GCSEs “go a little bit wrong” says assistant head teacher for Cloud 22 Terri Finch. The service also uses functional skills qualifications to help students build confidence about sitting exams. Sometimes it is the only option if children have been out of education for a long time. “We’ve had some young people who haven’t been in education since reception,” says Finch. “There’s just not enough time to fill those gaps, so the functional skills route is really positive.”

Many of the students are from disadvantaged backgrounds and lack devices and suitable internet connection at home. The charity provides laptops, wifi and data SIM cards in such cases, as well as exercise books and stationery, which are covered by the local authority funding. It has also partnered with the British Red Cross to provide families with food vouchers.

The day begins with half an hour of tutor time, including registration and an activity such as a quiz or setting learning targets. Next they have three 50-minute lessons with a 10-minute break in between. Lunchtime follows. Students can choose to take a break from the screen for half an hour or eat together. There are two more lessons in the afternoon.

The final class of the day is a one-to-one session with a Cloud 22 staff member. Students are required to have at least one of these sessions per week but some need more. “We check in with the young person on how they’re doing and review their targets, and if there’s anything academically they didn’t understand that we can support with,” says Finch.

Cloud 22 tailors lessons to children’s specific needs. For example, it recently provided an extra teacher to offer a separate lesson to two students who were doing well in maths to ensure they were being challenged ahead of their GCSE exam.

As well as academic learning, the service can organise vocational placements with learning providers. For example, one of the year 11 students spends two days a week volunteering at an equestrian centre. Finch says being in an outdoor environment has improved the child’s mental health to the extent he now attends school on-site one day a week. Before he came to the project, the young man, who is now planning to become a mechanic, had not even entered a school building for about four years. “He didn’t have any positive things to say about educators before he joined us,” says Finch. “It’s been a slow, slow approach, but it’s working for him.”

One girl was referred to Cloud 22 because she was pregnant and permanently excluded from school. After her maternity leave she studied online and gained GCSEs as well as functional skills qualifications. “Her little’un was next to her while she was doing lessons,” says Finch, who visited the girl weekly in the evenings to help her complete assessments. “If Cloud 22 didn’t exist she wouldn’t have been able to access any education for year 11.”

Cloud 22 provision also includes wraparound support for young people’s social, emotional and mental health. Finch says about 75 per cent of the young people the project has worked with have accessed help from Include Norfolk’s school therapist, who provides home visits.

A pastoral team also does weekly or bi-weekly home visits, depending on children’s needs. “If we know a young person is quite isolated and can’t get themselves into school because of anxiety, for example, we try to socialise them within the home, with the idea that we can help get them back into the community,” says Finch. The pastoral lead can also support children online, taking them into “break-out rooms” if they need personal help.

Some children have progressed to meeting off-line. Cloud 22 offers trips, such as to the zoo or paintballing. But children are not under pressure to attend. Similarly, pupils who sit exams can take them in Catch22’s assessment centre. But if their anxieties are too great, the charity arranges for students to sit papers at home under exam conditions.

Outcomes

There were 32 students on-roll throughout 2022/23 with 14 students entered for Key Stage 4 exams. A total of 93 per cent achieved a maths qualification, 71 per cent gained an English qualification and 57 per cent a science qualification.

In all, 79 per cent achieved at least one GSCE with 71 per cent gaining a Maths or English GCSE at grade 1 or above. The attendance rate over the year was just over 57 per cent.

In addition to academic success, Finch says the programme helped students gain “soft skills” such as communication and the ability to self-advocate.

Two students have returned to on-site school provision as a result of the service. Both of them initially moved to Cloud 22 because of behavioural problems.

What's next?

The organisation would like to offer its model in other local authority areas and has received interest from at least one county council.

If you think your project is worthy of inclusion, email supporting data toderren.hayes@markallengroup.com

Experience: Cloud 22 classes build Liam's confidence to take on studies

Liam, aged 15, became so anxious about going into school he used to cry every morning. When he stopped eating, his mum Annette decided the only option was to home-school him.

“He struggled a bit with his reading and writing,” she says. “And I was struggling trying to teach him.” She also found the cost of buying teaching materials problematic.

Last year, Norfolk County Council suggested Liam join a Cloud 22 year 10 class. Assistant head Terri Finch came to meet him at home to introduce the service. She explained he did not have to talk on screen if he felt uncomfortable. He could post replies or questions in a chat function. She also provided the family with a laptop and materials.

At first Liam did not turn on his camera. “It took him a long time to do that,” says Annette. “I sat next to him on the computer for the whole first year to get him into the routine.”

Finch or another Cloud 22 team member visited Liam daily at first, then weekly. “If there was any problem, I could call them,” says Annette. “It was like a big weight being lifted off my shoulders.”

Now in year 11, Liam attends classes on his own and has made friends with the other students. They chat online during breaks and lunchtime. He has not felt comfortable to go on any school trips. Instead, one of the Cloud 22 team accompanies him on walks.

Liam plans to sit GCSEs this year in maths, English and science. When he finishes in the summer, he wants to study English and maths with an online college.

“He’s got more confidence now,” says Annette. “He looks forward to logging on – he’ll never miss a day. If it wasn’t for Cloud 22, he wouldn’t be anywhere.”