Limpsfield Grange School Catch up Premium Strategy 2019/20 – update December 2020
What is Catch up Premium?
The Department for Education (DfE) provides additional funding, known as Catch up Premium. The literacy and numeracy Catch-up Premium gives state-funded schools, including special schools and alternative provision settings, additional funding to support year 7 students who did not achieve the expected standard in reading or maths at the end of Key Stage 2 (KS2). Schools are free to spend the money which is additional to the schools main budget, in a way that helps to raise attainment of these students, suggestions given by the DfE are to use the funding to pay for individual tuition, intensive small-group tuition, external services and materials that help students catch up over a short period of time. The aim is to close the gap in attainment and progress between these students and those who did achieve the expected standard in reading and maths at the end of Key Stage 2. Schools are required to publish details of how they plan to spend the funding. For more information about the Catch up Premium please click on the following link https://www.gov.uk/guidance/year-7-literacy-and-numeracy-catch-up-premium-guide-for-schools#how-to-use-your-year-7-literacy-and-numeracy-catch-up-premium
The Catch up Premium at Limpsfield Grange 2019 20 – our priorities
At Limpsfield Grange all of our students have Special Educational Needs. Approximately 85% of our cohort has been identified as autistic, and many of our students have High Functioning Autism or Asperger’s. Children and young people who have special educational needs and disabilities are more likely than other children to grow up in deprived households. According to the National Autistic Society only 16% of autistic adults are in paid employment; 40% of autistic people have an anxiety related mental health difficulty and 70% of High Functioning Autistic people have mental health difficulties. The majority of our students have not met national expectations for progress at the end of KS2 in either English or Maths, and are categorized as low attainers.
Our aim is for all of our students to become happy, healthy, empowered and included adults, who participate in, and contribute towards society. To enable our students to be happy and active citizens we have created a curriculum underpinned by our four areas for development:
| Wellbeing | Achievement | Communication | Independence |
The areas of wellbeing, achievement, communication and independence present the greatest barriers to learning and success for students at Limpsfield Grange.
For the students who are in receipt of Catch up Premium we aim to give them the tools required to make the best possible progress during Key Stages 3 & 4. Many of our students have had difficulties with attendance during their primary years, have struggled with the SATS focus in Year 6 and have gaps in their knowledge and skills. Using Catch up Premium funding we aim to help students to plug those gaps and gain the confidence to tackle the forthcoming challenges of the secondary school curriculum. We focus on skills and developing attributes that will enable the students to be successful, healthy and employable adults, the most important of these being reading, spelling and basic numeracy skills.
Catch up Premium funding and interventions in 2019/2020
In 2019/2020 we received £4063 in Catch up Premium funding. This funding is allocated to schools on the basis that they receive the same overall amount of year 7 Catch Up Premium funding they received in 2018 to 2019, however it is adjusted to reflect the percentage change in the size of their year 7 cohort, based on the October 2019 census. This year there are 13 students in Year 7. Three students scored below the 100 standard score in reading and in maths, whilst another three students were deemed below the level of the tests by their primary school.
Catch up Premium funding is distributed to schools in February, as a result some students in Year 8 continue to receive interventions building on the intervention they had in Year 7 if needed. Since then the focus has been on reading and spelling interventions. These interventions are focused on increasing reading ages and comprehension using a range of strategies, including phonics. Programs such as Toe by Toe are used with some students. The plan for the Summer term was to continue with the reading and spelling interventions for one student and to begin maths interventions with six students, this plan was put on hold due to school closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
As students became familiar with online teaching and home learning interventions were again introduced, in the summer second half term. These interventions took place via zoom and the students engaged well.
The impact of the reading interventions is measured through the analysis of reading test data. Individual Catch up Premium interventions are highly personalized and specific SMART targets are set for each intervention. Maths interventions are measured through pre-tests and tests after the intervention and through discussion with the class teacher about the student’s work and participation in class. Student progress in meeting SMART intervention targets are reported to and analysed by the Assistant Headteacher at the end of the intervention. Students also give feedback about their interventions.
Limpsfield Grange School Catch up Premium strategy is also monitored and evaluated through learning walks; work scrutiny discussions with students about their work; support and challenge for individual teachers; regular SLT discussion to assess the impact of the strategy; the School Improvement Plan and external review with our School Improvement Advisor.
The Assistant Headteacher has overall responsibility for the Catch up Premium strategy. Our Catch up Premium strategy is reviewed regularly in terms of the scope and breadth of interventions and their success in meeting individual student needs and enhancing progress in literacy and numeracy. Student progress is reported termly to the Curriculum Community and Student Welfare Committee and the Full Governing Body for further review.
Our success criteria for the Limpsfield Grange Catch up Premium Strategy 2019 – 2020:
The Catch up Premium strategy is reviewed annually, and we assess the impact of our Catch up premium spending through:
- Attendance – students in receipt of the Catch up Premium should have rates of attendance in line with or better than their non-Catch up Premium peers at Limpsfield Grange, and in line with the schools attendance target.
- Achievement – students in receipt of the Catch up Premium will accelerate their rate of progress across Year 7 in English & Maths (when compared with their rate of progress at Primary School)
- Students in receipt of Catch up Premium where the focus is literacy will improve their reading age by at least 1 year during Year 7, this will be measured by the Single Word Reading Test and PM Benchmarking.
- Students in receipt of Catch up Premium where the focus is literacy will improve their spelling age by at least 1 year during Year 7, this will be measured by the Vernon Spelling test.
- Students in receipt of Catch up Premium where the focus is numeracy will make at least one sub-grade of progress during year 7 in maths.
Catch up Premium outcomes 2019 2020
| Intervention | Outcomes |
| Individual reading and spelling interventions for 2 students |
|
| Individual or paired maths intervention for 7 students |
|
This academic year schools are receiving COVID Catch Up premium. If you would like to discuss the way we use this funding please contact the school and we would be happy to speak to you.
Janine Chippington Assistant Headteacher – updated December 2020