Headteacher Lynne Gavin – “Thank you to all the Action Tutoring volunteers on behalf of the children whose life chances are improving as a result of what they do.”

Lynne Gavin is the headteacher of Pakeman Primary School in Islington, London. Approximately 70% of its pupils are living in poverty, another 15% considered working poor, 75% of children speaking English as an additional language and many children come from a refugee background. On 4th March, Lynne shared a powerful talk at the launch of Action Tutoring’s Impact Report in the Houses of Parliament about why her school is working with Action Tutoring and the difference it makes…

When I first arrived at Pakeman, I was constantly surprised that so many of the things that I took for granted were new to our children. For example, can you imagine rarely stepping outside of your local environment? Never having been to the cinema? Or being asked to write about the seaside if you have never seen the sea, paddled in the water and felt the sand beneath your feet?

The fact is that disadvantage is still determining destiny for far too many children. Life chances are being determined by the parents they are born to and the postcode they are born in. These children are no less capable or intelligent, but there are serious obstacles that need to be overcome in order for them to have the same life chances as their more affluent peers.

Being disadvantaged can significantly impact on a child’s ability to learn. These children may not have a solid foundation of good physical, mental and emotional health; they may lack good language and literacy development; they may not have the material and physical support systems that other children have.

But disadvantage is not just a label – it’s about lives. Our children’s lives. In our school, we have pupils growing up in families affected by drug and alcohol abuse, or with a parent in prison. We have children who are new to the country as refugees. We have children who are acting as young carers for parents with mental health issues, which means they aren’t always in school, or arrive hungry having not been fed breakfast. We have pupils living in temporary accommodation because they are fleeing situations of domestic violence and have seen things they should never have witnessed. Then there are the pupils whose parents want to help support their learning, but are hindered by their own poor literacy skills. Each child has a different story, a different need and often the odds are stacked against them.

Working together

We can turn things around for these children. Schools that serve disadvantaged children have to work hard to counteract the impact of disadvantage. We know it can be done – but we need the right resources and the right support. The more resources that a child has at their disposal, the better the chances of optimising learning and enabling them to experience success. Partnership working helps us to provide these additional resources and support. Action Tutoring is one of the partners that we work with. We introduced Action Tutoring last year and we have recently been successful in gaining funding from a foundation to continue partnering with them for another three years and to extend the project into nine other schools in the local area. As a result, more children are benefiting from this excellent support.

When something is working well, you get a buzz. You can feel it, you can see it and you can hear it! I can feel it.  I was impressed with Action Tutoring from the moment they came into school to talk to me about the project.

• They care passionately about improving outcomes.
• They have high expectations.
• They are aspirational.
• They listen and want to improve what they are doing.
• They are reflective and thoughtful.

I continue to be impressed by the way that our lovely Action Tutoring Programme Executive, Emma, manages our sessions so beautifully each week, with great care and attention.

I can see the impact sessions are having every time I drop in. Tutors have good subject knowledge, provide clear explanations, they inspire the children and are great role models.

Children enjoy the sessions – there are high levels of engagement, motivation, interaction and encouragement, children are working hard and are being challenged. The children are proud of their work and happy to talk about their learning.

Finally, I can hear the impact. Here are some teachers’ comments:

“Tutors are dedicated, professional, well organised and knowledgeable.”

“Action Tutoring is an amazing resource and has had a clear and sustained impact. As well as moving the children on in reading and maths, we have seen a real improvement in some of the children’s focus and confidence. The children are making links between the work they do with their tutor and the work they do in class and this helps them be more independent and take ownership of their learning.”

Then here are some comments from the children themselves:

“I get help quicker in the sessions. In class there are more children, so I have to wait longer for help.”

“Because when I go home, I don’t get that much practice, so it helps me if I go to tutoring.”

“In Action Tutoring, I learn new things that I could not believe I could even do.”

“I would 100% recommend it to another pupil. If you don’t know something, your tutor will explain it to you. I want to show my tutor how much I’ve learnt.”

Champions

Our children need champions. Champions – who never give up on them, who understand the power of relationships and insist they become the best they can possibly be. That’s just what the volunteers from Action Tutoring are doing. They are making a difference by championing our children.

The volunteers are ordinary people who care enough to want to make a difference, who show the children that they believe in them. They are ordinary people who put their energies, resources and skills into helping the children meet their goals, experience success and reach their full potential.

But I’d like to finish by saying I am wrong. I am wrong about them being ordinary people. I think they are quite remarkable people. People who are prepared to give of themselves to make the lives of others better. I often think how wonderful it is to imagine our children moving on to lead happy and successful lives – all because the people around them helped to fight for them and to make a difference.

Nelson Mandela said, “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” These remarkable people are helping us to do just that. So, I’d like to thank them for that, thank them from the bottom of my heart on behalf of Pakeman and the other schools but most of all on behalf of the children whose life chances are improving as a result of what they do.

Headteacher Lynne Gavin speaking at the Action Tutoring Impact Launch Report.