Ensuring a Smooth Transition for Every Pupil
The Challenges, and opportunities, of primary to secondary transition
Every year, thousands of children move from primary to secondary school—a transition that can be both exciting and daunting. As teachers, we see first-hand how a lack of key information can make this shift more difficult for both pupils and staff. Without a clear picture of each child’s needs, strengths, and challenges, ensuring continuity of learning can be a challenge, and the opportunities a new school could bring might be lost.
Why Early Information Sharing Matters
We know that schools like information early, as the sooner a secondary school knows about a child, the sooner they can start planning.
A system like SixIntoSeven facilitates this early information transfer, ensuring that no child is left behind. By establishing a “corporate memory”, a shared source of key information, it prevents vital details from being lost during the transition process, helping to give pupils the best possible start in their new school environment.
The Benefits for Teachers and Pupils
- Supporting Vulnerable & SEND Pupils from Day One
Some pupils need additional support, such as those with SEND, or those facing personal challenges. With early insights, secondary schools can put the right interventions in place before term begins, creating a more inclusive and supportive learning environment.
- Saving Teachers Time and Reducing Workload
The traditional transition process often relies on bespoke spreadsheets and forms. This can be inconsistent and time-consuming. A structured system, such as SixIntoSeven, streamlines this process, by enabling conversations to be better informed, concentrating on those pupils either party wants to discuss.
- Making Information-Driven Decisions
With access to structured, high-quality data, secondary teachers can make informed decisions about interventions, and pastoral care from the outset. This means more effective support for every child, whether they need additional help or greater academic challenges. Instead of spending weeks identifying pupil needs, teachers can implement targeted strategies from the first day of term.
- Strengthening Collaboration Between Schools
Great transitions happen when primary and secondary schools work as a team. A structured system promotes communication, ensuring that insights and strategies are shared effectively. This benefits not just individual pupils but the entire school community. By working together, teachers can ensure that pupils experience consistency in their education, leading to improved attainment and well-being.
- GDPR Peace of mind
You would never let a child out of school without a full risk assessment, and nor should you do this with their data. All data transfer systems need to come with full GDPR compliance and be secure. This is particularly the case when pupils move outside of their local authority, perhaps to schools with whom there has been no prior contact.
Creating an informed transition
Manchester City Council are implementing SixIntoSeven this year. Keith Bardsley, their Senior Schools Quality Assurance Officer noted.
“As a sector, we are incredibly data rich, but we are often not particularly data literate. We are awash with data that we do not often use. It is a common theme that primary schools tell us that they pass data into an ‘ether’, and it is lost.
Similarly, secondary schools tell us they do not always receive the appropriate data.”
Let’s Make Transition Work for Everyone
A strong transition system benefits pupils and teachers alike. It ensures continuity in learning, supports vulnerable students, strengthens collaboration between schools and inclusive practice.
By using SixIntoSeven, we can help create a seamless transition process: one where every child starts secondary school with the support in place so they belong and can thrive.
You find out how SixIntoSeven can work for your MAT, Local Authority or school group by visiting our contact page or email us at hello@pupilpathways.com