Early education provision in the state-maintained sector has historically played an important role in ensuring equitable access to high-quality early education in England. These settings have higher qualification requirements than other providers, and as they have been concentrated in areas of higher disadvantage, children from lower income…

This report is focused on the uptake of GCSE subjects in England in 2022. Uptake in a GCSE subject is defined as the number or percentage of students at the end of Key Stage 4 (KS4) taking the subject. This report was produced using publicly available data from the Department for Education's (DfE) "Find and compare schools in England"…

This article reports on research which investigated the lived experiences of primary school headteachers, teachers and parents during the first lockdown in England between March and July 2020. The study aimed to understand how homeschooling was approached and the challenges and opportunities it afforded. Individual semi-structured interviews were…

This report is focused on the uptake of GCSE subjects in England in 2021. Uptake in a GCSE subject is defined as the number or percentage of students at the end of Key Stage 4 (KS4) taking the subject. This report was produced using publicly available data from the Department for Education's (DfE) "Find and compare schools in England"…

Comparatively few young white males from poorer backgrounds progress to university. This paper considers evidence gathered from a study that explores the educational ambitions of these young men from five areas of educational disadvantage in North West England, at two stages in their learner journeys. The first stage relates to school year 10…

Community-centered approaches can be effective ways to engage communities and improve their health and well-being. The Grange is a community-led, multifaceted, and dynamic intervention incorporating a community hub and garden, that took place in a small area of the North-West of England, characterized by high levels of deprivation and poor health.…

There is strong evidence that peer tutoring, as a form of cooperative learning, has a positive impact on tutor and tutee outcomes. However, little previous research has been reported as to the differential effects of engaging in cooperative learning in dyads for peer tutors and peer tutees, respectively. A randomised controlled experimental study…

This action research study, drawing on participatory frameworks, investigated whether a Year 10 English class (15-16-year-olds), including struggling readers, could develop their reading self-concept and 'voice'. The research aimed to extend findings from a larger, mixed-method study, developing reading comprehension and motivation with younger…

Learning in the arts has the potential to be a co-constructive means of inquiry for students, which enables experience of the self in relation to practice. This research explores a practice-based investigation of agency as self-definition, amid normative social constructions of the subject. The focus for data analysis is a project taught to BTEC…

This paper is a response to an earlier article in the "Journal of Education Policy," which calls for 'new ideas and constructive principles and practices for the provision of socially-just education'. We first discuss how an economistic approach to education entrenches socioeconomic disadvantage and argue that, in the light of evidence…

Latest research from the authors and their team at the University of Oxford has used administrative data, a survey of local authorities, and a series of case studies to paint a picture of what has happened to children's centres across England. The six case studies include Londonborough, Portcity, Shipcity, Rivershire, Midshire, and Northport.…

This project explores 'meaningful' student voice development in an evaluation of project-based Character lessons taught by teachers and students. In the context of a secondary school in a deprived urban ward, within a Multi-Academy Trust using value-based instruction, this evaluation is grounded in the notion that student empowerment is essential…

Community schools have long been accepted as an institutional mechanism for intervening in the relationship between poverty, poor educational outcomes, and limited life chances. At a time when public services are being retracted, and disadvantaged places are being increasingly left to struggle, community schools are poised to become more important…

Background: Recent effectiveness studies have investigated the relationship between two dimensions of effectiveness -- namely, quality and equity. Specifically, the question of whether effective schools can also reduce the initial differences in student outcomes attributed to student background factors has been examined. In this context, the…

Free schools are all-ability schools, funded by the government, and can be set up by groups such as charities, universities, teachers or parents. Free schools came into being as part of the Academies Act 2010 and the Education Act 2011 and have the same legal status as academies. The first free schools opened in September 2011 and by the end of…