The calls for help began the day after Dr John Dunford was appointed national Pupil Premium Champion in July. Although he was not scheduled to begin his role until this September, it seemed some schools and headteachers could not wait that long.
“I replied immediately giving them links to documents and information that they would find useful,” Dr Dunford said. “There is evidence out there that schools clearly don’t know about but would find extremely useful. They were delighted to get a response, as I was at being able to help them.”
The schools’ interest was perhaps not surprising given than Ofsted will, in future, pay greater attention to how schools spend their Pupil Premium money, and those doing outstanding work in closing the achievement gap between the most disadvantaged pupils and their peers will be expected to work closely with those who are struggling – moves that were announced by David Laws, the schools minister, at the same time as Dr Dunford’s appointment.
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