Year 7 Literacy and Numeracy
Catch Up Premium 2019/2020

Introduction

The Year 7 literacy and numeracy catch-up premium is a sum of money allocated to Yr 7 students who have not reached the expected standard in reading or maths at the end of KS2.

Uplands is a Secondary Special School which delivers education to students with Severe or Profound and multiple Learning difficulties and or a diagnosis of Autism.

All students upon entry are working below age related expectations. Consequently Uplands receives literacy and numeracy catch-up premium for all Year 7 students.

Current funding

The current funding allocation (based on October 2019 School Census) for the academic year 2019/2020 is projected to be £7500

Current Spending intentions

All students upon entry to Uplands have very complex learning profiles, often with associated anxiety related behaviours, particularly for students who have a diagnosis of ASC. This results in students not being ready to learn when they arrive at the start of September.

We consider that the best way to ensure Year 7 students make outstanding progress is to use the literacy numeracy catch-up premium to support a smooth transition into the school. Uplands have a dedicated team which supports transitions, including those students transitioning into Year 7 who;

Visit Year 6 students in their current learning environment to:

• Understand the individualised needs of students
• Understanding their communication needs
• Understanding their sensory needs
• Be able to suggest a suitable House which the student will enter at Uplands
• Work with the feeder schools to identify specific barriers to learning
• Work with the Uplands leadership team to suggest suitable class groups
• Attend Annual reviews of Year 6 students (where necessary)
• Produce 1 page profiles to best inform teachers of students’ individual needs
• Arrange and host transitional visits

By committing to use our allocated Year 7 reading and numeracy catch-up  funds to support the transitions team we ensure that each Year 7 student has the best chance of a positive start, which enables them to begin learning sooner than if they didn’t have the input of the transitions team throughout Year 6.

Previous spending

In the last year, the Year 7 Reading and numeracy catch-up premium has been spent on

• A dedicated Transitions team
• Supporting the maintenance of a reading scheme which enabled us to provide staff training on the use of the reading scheme and Benchmarking

How last year’s allocation made a difference?

• Year 6 students transitioned positively into Year 7
• As a result of the transition team’s work, all students were placed in the correct classes and no ‘in year’ movement occurred as a result of not being in the correct learning environment

Year 7 Literacy and Numeracy Catch Up Premium 2018/2019