New polling by Parentkind finds high levels of parental uncertainty about the National Tutoring Programme, which was created in response to partial school closures during the pandemic to combat lost learning. A pillar of the government’s new Schools White Paper is to offer targeted support for every child who needs to catch up on their learning, aiming to provide pupils with up to six million tutoring courses by 2024.
The poll found that:
- Only around 52% of parents said that they had heard of the National Tutoring Programme (NTP), where 48% had not.
- 24% said that the school had offered tutoring to pupils, but nearly 45% said theirs hadn’t. 31% weren’t sure.
- 76% of parents were inclined to support the principle of the government’s ‘Parent Pledge’, which says that the school will provide support and updates if their child falls behind in English or maths.
Outside of school, just over a quarter of parents said that their child has received tutoring for maths, where one in five said the same for English. Just over two in five said their child’s school currently provides support to children who need additional help.
Parentkind CEO John Jolly said: “Tutoring will continue to be one of the levers that the government uses to ensure that every child has the opportunity to get up to date on their learning. But, parents are concerned about the disruption their child has faced to their schooling over the last few years, and the impact that this will have on their outcomes and opportunities later in life.
“The ‘Parent Pledge’ is a step in the right direction in terms of bringing parents further into their child’s education. It is pleasing to see policymakers recognise their crucial role in supporting their child’s learning. However, the devil will be in the details in terms of whether or not additional tutoring not only helps to improve outcomes for children, but also reaches those who need it the most.
“Parentkind is mindful that the ‘Parent Pledge’ requires parents to pro-actively approach the school before they receive support, and for many parents there are existing barriers to crossing that threshold. The ‘Parent Pledge’ could work better by working in conjunction with initiatives such as Parentkind’s Blueprint for Parent-Friendly Schools which helps build robust and positive relationships between home and school. The innovative framework is suitable for every school to ensure the home and school partnership is as close and mutually supportive as possible.”
