It seems like only yesterday (June 2020) that the Government launched an emergency package of measures to support our children with catch up tuition interventions called the National Tutoring Programme (NTP). This was supported by extensive research focusing on the benefits of small group and one-to-one tuition published by the Education Endowment Foundation. The research demonstrated the effectiveness of tuition at improving pupil outcomes, in some cases by up to five months. Formally rolled out from November 2020 and forming part of a £1.7 billion catch up fund package of measures to support lost learning during the pandemic.
Fast forward to March 2022, and the National Tutoring Programme has made a positive impact at schools across England. Through approved Tuition Providers, schools have been able to access subsidised targeted tutoring interventions for their pupils. Connex Education Partnership were one of the first approved Tuition Partners and have successfully supported over 50,000 pupils since the programme launched. Schools have had the flexibility to choose when the tutoring sessions take place, with a variety of different tuition delivery models being used, tailored to pupils’ needs. Carl Kavanagh, Senior Assistant Headteacher at Queensmead School in Ruislip shared how the NTP had allowed his school to tailor tutoring support models to meet the needs of individual pupils.
“Over the past two years, Queensmead has been able to support over 250 children through catch-up tuition. Initially, we targeted our looked after children with one-to-one online tuition across year groups 7, 8 , 9 and 10 accessed at home. When we were able to return to the classroom, we built an after-school tutoring model focusing on English and Maths. We built half-termly intensive tuition blocks for pupils and are starting on a new cohort of catch-up tuition for this half term.”
Carl shared his teachers had reported over 80% of pupils had improved over the course of the tutoring programme. Targeting disadvantaged and struggling pupils, this intervention has also been a welcome relief for parents and carers. “Parents have really engaged, our teachers identified pupils as being disadvantaged for a host of reasons and contacted their parents with the after-school support model suggestion. The take up and feedback from Queensmead Schools families has been extremely positive.”
Another school who has accessed tuition through Connex is Plantation Primary School. Their Deputy Head Teacher, Colin Boulton shared how successful the NTP had been to support their disadvantaged pupils with catching up. “Our younger children have really suffered during lockdown, not just with their academic abilities but also with the development of their social skills. Using Connex tutors to support with re-engagement and a focus on phonic development has made a significant impact on the confidence of our children who need it the most.” Plantation has also been flexible with their tutoring delivery model, with intensive five-week blocks of three tutoring sessions a week targeting year 2 pupils, this has helped plug the learning gaps.
When asked what one piece of advice Colin would give to a school considering accessing the NTP support he shared:
“Just do it. Ensure you work with a reputable tuition provider like Connex. Their tutors are often qualified teachers and are a resource at your disposal to support. It’s so flexible, you can tailor delivery models depending on your pupil’s age group. Working with excellent quality tutors with teaching experience have been key and we’ve been able to ensure Connex tutors have become a cohesive part of the school community.”
If your school would like to find out more about the National Tutoring Programme to support your disadvantage pupils you can read the Connex Education Partnership’s impact report and contact Connex team at tuitionpartners@connex-education.com.
