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Bespoke Transition Project supports Year 6 pupils

Smoothing the way from Primary to Secondary school – our bespoke Transition Project is already bridging the gap between primary and secondary school for several Year 6 pupils in East Salford

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A bespoke Transition Project is already bridging the gap between primary and secondary school for several Year 6 pupils in East Salford

Through our partnership with The Headley Trust, we’re working with several primary schools – Summerville Primary, Lark Hill Community Primary School, St John’s CE Primary, Marlborough Road Primary School, St Paul’s CE Primary, Light Oaks Primary and The Friars Primary School – across the city.  We’re partnering with these primaries, all feeder schools for Oasis Academy MediaCityUK, Buile Hill High School, Albion High School and Ellesmere Park High School, to support their eldest pupils to build confidence in Maths ahead of their all-important SATs this summer. Crucially, the programme will continue into the Autumn term, following the same young people as they settle into their new schools.

To support the primary school pupils to achieve their potential, our tutors are delivering 15 hours of Maths tuition in the run-up to the Year 6 pupils’ exams in May. This amount of tuition has proven impact – our Randomised Control Trial showed that 12 hours of tuition gave three months’ additional progress in Maths. Several of the primary schools are also taking part in our Easter Club sessions, to give their pupils an additional boost and to embed their learning further. The club is giving pupils up to 10 hours of tuition, alongside the same number of hours of fun activities, over the holiday week.

Straight after the SATs exams, we will support the Year 6 pupils with an additional three weeks of Maths tuition in their respective primary schools. Jessica Howley, Deputy Headteacher of St John’s CE Primary School was delighted at the impact of the club:

It has been fantastic to be part of the project and see the positive impact on the children involved. The children have grown in confidence after only a few weeks as a result of the tuition and this is amazing to see. The tutors have got to know the children quickly and have skilfully adapted the activities to meet their needs. As a senior leader, I have enjoyed working with Tutor Trust – they have made the process easy and supportive."
Jessica Howley, Deputy Headteacher of St John’s CE Primary School

She went on to say:

The Easter Club has allowed us to provide engaging and useful activities for the children who need this most over the Easter break, but without asking too much of our own staff. Tutor Trust have planned this in a way which ensured that the children have wanted to attend, despite the sessions falling within their holidays.”
Jessica Howley, Deputy Headteacher of St John’s CE Primary School

To tie in with the pupils’ big move in September, we will be delivering an extra, significant, 15 hours of tuition to the same pupils, to further embed their skills in Maths:

We’ve put a lot of thought into the Transition Project because we understand the challenges many young people face in moving from primary to secondary school, and how helping them to become more confident in Maths can have a significant impact. The Transition Project is unique in continuing to bridge the gap between the feeder primary schools and the secondary schools in the autumn, giving the same pupils, who will then be new Year 7s, an additional 15 weeks of Maths tuition in their new school, ensuring they continue to flourish in the subject as they settle in. We know it will make a difference to those young people who take part.”
Tutor Trust Co-Founders, Nick Bent and Abigail Shapiro

The Transition Project was established following a successful pilot programme in the academic year of 2018/19 but was paused because of the pandemic. We have now reinstated the programme to support children through this unique project on their journeys into secondary school.

In partnership with the National Tutoring Programme and The Headley Trust, the Transition Project provides all participating primary schools with a method of accessing free high-quality tuition, providing bespoke academic intervention and emotional support for children in East Salford.