A partnership programme supporting pre-schoolers in their communication and language development at 23 settings across Bath and North East Somerset (BaNES), funded by local charity St John’s Foundation, has significantly reduced the number of children needing additional support in just two years. Due to the project’s success, more settings will soon benefit from the scheme.
St John’s Language for Life (LfL) programme aims to increase the number of 2 to 5-year-olds reaching the age-related expected language level. This crucial work aims to level the educational playing field and ensure that all children start primary school with the level of speech and language they need.
At the start of the 2021/2022 academic year, 84% of children assessed at participating settings were identified as needing extra support, including the majority of children in receipt of early years pupil premium (EYPP). By the end of the 2022/2023 year, this figure reduced to just 29%.
David Hobdey, CEO at St John’s Foundation, said, “Speech and language skills are fundamental to a child’s ability to learn once they start school. By identifying children that need help before they begin formal education, support can be put in place immediately and we’re delighted to see that, in most cases, these children are now catching up in time for school.
“Crucially, where extra support is needed, this forms part of the handover from pre-school to reception, so teachers are aware and can put measures in place from the beginning to prevent pupils from falling behind, which can quickly spiral with a long-lasting impact on academic achievement.
“Where children qualify for the EYPP it is seen as an indicator of ‘disadvantage’. The fact that a high proportion of these children are among those identified as needing additional speech and language support highlights how critical the LfL initiative is in levelling the academic playing field. Its success will form an instrumental part in our ambitious goal to narrow the attainment gap at Key Stage 2 in our region.”
There is significant academic inequality in the region, with BaNES ranking fifth worst in the country for the attainment gap at Key Stage 2. This gap is defined as the difference in academic achievement between students in receipt of pupil premium compared to their more affluent peers.
In 2020, St John’s Foundation launched a ten-year strategy to significantly reduce the regional attainment gap across BaNES through its Foundation Fund, targeting children from pre-birth until secondary school to ensure all children have the same chances to live happy, healthy lives. The Fund has supported more than 2,000 children since 2021.
The LfL programme is part of the Fund’s Early Years strand to support speech and language development. Early Years staff at participating settings have received ongoing training to identify where children need extra help, to put the correct interventions in place including referrals for specialist support when necessary, and to provide additional help with learning within the setting. Children are then rescreened periodically to check progress.
An Impact Report, carried out independently by analysis firm ImpactEd Evaluation, finds that the programme’s success indicates that it is already having a ‘systemic impact’ on Early Years settings in BaNES, and that these practices should be shared more widely.
It also highlights that training is enabling staff to identify and nurture those children who do not qualify for specialist support but are nonetheless behind the expected language level for their age group.
David Hobdey concludes, “The clear impact that the LfL programme is having after just two years is astounding. We’re delighted that these positive results have led us to extend the programme to more than 40 settings and over several years to fully embed these practices so that they remain in place despite the traditionally high turnover of staff at Early Years settings.
“We are under no illusion that there is much more work to be done to level the academic playing field in the region, but we are hopeful that these early interventions at Early Years settings will yield improved academic outcomes in years to come, particularly for children from under-served backgrounds.”