The benefits of early transfer of transition information

This guest blog has been kindly written by Liz Stevenson, who founded and runs LS Education. Liz has been a leader in the field of promoting successful transitions for many years. You can find out more about Liz here or by emailing directly liz.lseducation@gmail.com 

Every year thousands of primary schools transfer information about Y6 pupils to the secondary schools that those pupils will be transferring to. Considering that there is a national notification day of March 1st (or the closest Monday to this) it is amazing how the timescales of this information transfer can differ between schools.  

Having worked in primary and secondary schools, as well as being a Transition Manager for a Local Authority in the Midlands, I can confirm that the sooner the pupil data is transferred the better. Here are some thoughts to consider and reasons why I would always recommend the earliest possible transfer of data. 

How does early data transfer support primary schools? 

Primary schools face a number of challenges when it comes to sharing data for transition. Over the years I have worked with primary schools who have had data transfer requests from up to 10 secondary schools. While most of the data requested remains consistent, the format of collection is different for each. The request for this information also comes through in stages, between March 1st and sometimes as late as July. This ad-hoc approach and inconsistency create a heavy workload for primary staff, just as they are also preparing for SATs and possibly writing moderation.  

Having access to a borough-wide data collection service, such as Pupil Pathways’ service SixIntoSeven, means that the primary school staff already know exactly what information will be requested by secondary schools and in what format. By using a system that remains the same annually, the completion of the database can be carried out at any point during the year. This way, it cuts down on workload between March and July and means that secondary schools can have access to the information sooner. It also provides the opportunity for a wider team to carry out their own section at a time that suits them. 

How does early data transfer support secondary schools? 

While primary schools are preparing for SATs, moderation and all other end of school activities, the secondary staff are in the final straight of exam preparation for year 11 and 13 as well as continuing to keep all other year groups on track. It is difficult to say exactly which member of staff may be responsible for the transition of pupils into a secondary school, but in my experience, there is usually a small team involved. This could consist of Heads of Year, Heads of House, Heads of Key Stage, SENCos, pastoral support, admin support, I could go on and I am sure I have missed a vital role or two! Just this list of staff who may be involved in transition alone, is a key reason why the information reaching the secondary school should be as close to 1st March as possible. Not all staff will have capacity to start working closely with this information, but there will be key players who can make a start and analyse the information and plan for September.  

For all of those primary schools who have worked with up to 10 secondaries, I have supported secondary schools who have had up to 80 partner primary schools. The early transfer of information will never be a replacement for the conversations between staff, but it can make the plan for these conversations more strategic.

For example, as the leader for Transition for many years, I would always focus and plan my contact with partner primary schools based on numbers of pupils transferring into my school(s) from March, regardless of any information I had to hand. If I am being honest, there was usually very little information until the meeting took place. We would complete the forms together.  However, if schools have all the information that a system like SixIntoSeven from Pupil Pathways can provide, early on, they can strategically plan those visits and phone calls around pupil need rather than school numbers. Using one system can also help ensure that the right member of the team makes initial contact and supports working in tandem with SENCos and the pastoral team. 

How does early data transfer support pupils? 

This is very simple, the more schools know about pupils, the better they can plan their induction and the smoother, more pleasant experience this can be for children. 

There is a reason that one of the biggest fears for pupils moving from Y6 into Y7 is that they will lose the connections that they have with other pupils and with staff. This is not only important from a pastoral perspective but also their academic achievements to date. Over the years, Y7 pupils have told me that much of the work that they access in the first few months (if not longer) in secondary school is at least the same, if not easier than work they had done in Y6. With early access to the academic information provided by SixIntoSeven, staff can tailor the curriculum to the pupil’s current attainment, much as they will do when pupils are beyond Y7. No one wants to feel like the learning they have already done has been a waste of time. 

Pupils who can see their learning, and their life experience, being taken into consideration are motivated pupils, motivated pupils are successful pupils, and this makes for a much more productive (and happy) school year. 

To conclude I urge you to consider this: 

•        How soon should primary schools start to gather data? This should be an all-round job. 
•        How soon should secondary schools start using the data? From the day that they discover who their cohort will be.