Year 7 Literacy And Numeracy Catch Up Premium

2020-2021

Following the discontinuation of Year 7 catch-up premium for 2020-21, we will continue and develop the following strategies in order to support and boost children who arrive in Year 7 below the expected standard (100 scaled score) in either English or Maths.

• We will continue to fund an additional smaller teaching group in English and Maths in both year 7 and 8; this allows smaller classes and more individual / targeted teaching for pupils who need additional support in numeracy and literacy.
• All year 7 tutors were trained. in vocabulary acquisition techniques. This forms a fundamental part of the pastoral / tutor time programme.
• Lexia is a reading recovery programme which is a targeted support intervention for our very weakest readers, these pupils have reading ages (NGRT) of more than 3 years below their chronological age.
• Rapid plus reading recovery programme is a targeted intervention for our pupils who have a reading below their chronological age (NGRT). Students participate in two reading sessions a week.
• Tutor time withdrawal intervention in Maths, with the second in charge of the department and graduate mentor, following a tailor-made recovery curriculum this focusing on key underpinning numeracy strategies.
• During tutor time, one session per fortnight is allocated to Numeracy Ninjas, a times tables proficiency programme.
• Continuing the use of NGRT reading assessment as a tool to enhance, refine and inform teaching practice.

Literacy & Numeracy Catch-up Premium 2019-20

How we spent the literacy and numeracy catch up premium funding for 2019-20 (£14,258)

• Extra English and maths teaching groups (curriculum re-modelling). Blocking with additional groups for English and maths allowing smaller classes and more individual / targeted teaching for pupils who need additional support in numeracy and literacy.
• Withdrawal in English and maths for specialist support by specialist SEND teacher.
• Part-fund the salary for Curriculum Director in English/Maths, a senior role to lead on literacy and numeracy across the curriculum. This includes extended writing.
• Compulsory silent reading pastoral program (class sets of texts for each Year 7 tutor group).
• Numeracy - For the 2019-20 academic year, the maths and SEND departments, in conjunction, ran a Year 7 catch-up programme for selected Year 7 pupils who entered the Academy with a below national average KS2 baseline score. The aim of this programme was to substantially improve the numeracy and basic number skills of these pupils so that they can access more difficult components from the KS3 Curriculum. This was delivered in Term 1 and 2 following the identification of this cohort of 47 pupils.
• The Year 7 Catch Up groups for 2018-19 has a total of 44 pupils not meeting age related expectations in two or more literacy-based assessments. They have been split into groups for the following:
  • reading comprehension
  • phonics
  • literacy 

 Impact of the 2019-20 interventions

The impact of the above spending / interventions demonstrated significant progress.

Despite not being secondary ready, students who qualified for catch up funding made excellent progress over the year, which then led to the following results after a year of intervention:

Maths: 39/47 children made accelerated progress when compared with the rest of the cohort 83%

English: 31/44 children made accelerated progress when compared with the rest of the cohort 70%

This data was created by ranking all pupils based on their prior attainment and then re-ranking them based on their English/Maths assessments, the majority of pupils ranked higher in their assessment than they did by prior attainment.

In addition, when questioned, students who benefitted from the small group interventions and smaller classes said:

“I feel that I can understand English a lot better now.”

“I’ve improved my vocabulary. I’ve learned lots of new words!”

“I’m much better at my times tables.”

“I’m getting better at fractions and decimals.”

2018-19 Numeracy

For the 2018-19 academic year, the maths and SEND departments, in conjunction, ran a year 7 catch-up programme for selected year 7 pupils who entered the Academy with a below national average KS2 baseline score. The aim of this programme was to substantially improve the numeracy and basic number skills of these pupils so that they can access more difficult components from the KS3 Curriculum. This was delivered in Term 1 and 2 following the identification of this cohort of 47 pupils.

2018-19 Literacy

The Year 7 Catch Up groups for 2018-19 has a total of 44 pupils not meeting age related expectations in tow or more literacy based assessments. They have been split into groups for the following:

• reading comprehension
• phonics
• literacy 

How we spent previous year's allocation 

• Withdrawal in English and Maths for specialist support using Subject Specialist
• Teaching time across Humanities – Writing across the curriculum 
• Additional leadership capacity to intervene/monitor in English and Maths