Commenting on the publication of the National Foundation for
Educational Research’s (NFER) implementation and process
evaluation of the National Tutoring Programme’s third year, Julie
McCulloch, Director of Policy at the Association of School and
College Leaders, said:
“It is a crying shame that, having established tutoring support
for pupils, schools now face the prospect of the government
pulling the plug on the programme.
“As this report states, there is high satisfaction with the
tutoring programme in its current form, and schools want it to
continue, but they will need financial support to do so.
“However, the government has said that the academic year 2023 to
2024 is the final year of the programme and NTP funding
will not be awarded beyond this academic year. It adds that
schools will be encouraged to continue to prioritise tuition for
those students who need it the most through existing budgets.
“However, as the budgets of schools are stretched beyond breaking
point, it is highly unlikely that many schools will be able to do
so.
“Tutoring was introduced as a specific response to lost learning
in the Covid pandemic, but it can also be a great way of
improving outcomes for learners who need extra support in general
and narrowing the disadvantage gap.
“The fact that is has now been established should be seen as a
golden opportunity by the government to capitalise on the work
that has already been done and provide the funding to embed it in
the school system.”
