At this year’s Labour Party Conference, the Education Policy Institute has partnered with Teach First to hold a public panel on: ‘Transforming outcomes by 2040 – how can education policy improve the life chances of persistently disadvantaged pupils?’
The experience of growing up in poverty creates profound hurdles to engaging and achieving school, as well as undermining children’s health, wellbeing and life chances. In particular, the million children experiencing persistent disadvantage – who spend at least 80% of their school lives growing up in poverty – demonstrate some of the lowest attainment and destination outcomes in England’s education system. The government’s mission to halve the attainment gap by 2040 will not be achieved without targeted support for this group, whose outcomes remained consistently low even at times when the overall attainment gap narrowed.
The Child Poverty Strategy has been launched to provide immediate support and set out a plan to tackle the root causes. Alongside the rollout of free school meals and the provision of early support through Best Start Family Hubs, the two-child limit has been removed, lifting 450,000 children out of poverty. Further reforms are expected with the intention to boost family income, drive down the cost of essentials, and strengthen local support. Yet reaching pupils experiencing deep and persistent poverty remains a challenge.
The Government’s schools white paper has proposed reforms to deprivation funding based on household income to ensure that greater levels of investment for schools support the poorest children. Currently, persistent disadvantage is not recognised in education policy – EPI research shows that the current school funding system does not distinguish between different levels of disadvantage and recommends ways to target funding to this group. Research from Teach First identifies the challenges faced by schools educating this group, but also shows that change is possible – there are schools across the country achieving excellent outcomes for persistently disadvantaged pupils. With the government now reviewing how disadvantage in education is defined, this is a crucial moment to consider how to build on the momentum of both the Child Poverty Strategy and the schools white paper.
This panel will hear from policymakers, education leaders and sector experts to consider how the proposed reforms will improve outcomes for persistently disadvantaged pupils and, importantly, what more may be required to increase their visibility in the system. By acknowledging the cumulative impact of years spent in poverty and directing targeted support to where it is needed most, education policy can help negate the effects of growing up in poverty.
Speakers will be announced in due course.
** Note: This event will take place in the conference secure zone. To access the secure zone you will need to obtain a pass directly from the Labour Party.**
