Primary · Oxted, Surrey · 167 pupils

A sceptical headteacher, 16 pupils tutored at once, and a phenomenal difference

“When I saw Third Space Learning in action I couldn’t believe the engagement”

A sceptical headteacher, 16 pupils tutored at once, and a phenomenal difference
Gill Robertson, Headteacher Holland Junior School, Oxted, Surrey
16 Year 6 pupils in one-to-one sessions at once
Pupil Premium children were the main cohort
SEN learners now top of the school for focus and attention
200-250 pupils on roll
This case study is from our human tutoring, the tutor-led one-to-one programmes we ran before Skye, our AI maths tutor. Skye is built on the same principles and the same one-to-one approach, using insights from 2,295,000+ tutoring sessions like these.
Figures reported by the school in the original case study, from our human one-to-one tutoring programmes
The challenge

Third Space helps us build pupil confidence in maths

We mainly use Third Space for our Pupil Premium children. They’re a group, at our school, who lack confidence in many areas but particularly in maths. We wanted to close that identified attainment gap and have found that Third Space Learning definitely helps us to do that.

I was sceptical at first…but the difference can be phenomenal

The starting point

Seeing it in action at another school won me over

When I first heard about Third Space I didn’t know whether the children would all be engaged in exactly the same lesson, and therefore I couldn’t necessarily see the value of putting half a class load of children into just a one-lesson-suits-all situation. I was also slightly concerned about whether we really wanted our children to be learning from a laptop.

But I went to see it in action at another school and I was amazed at how engaged they were but also at the sheer breadth of the lessons on offer, and that they were highly individualised for those children. I didn’t see two children on the same lesson at all.

Who it helped

It’s particularly benefited some of our SEN learners

We have a number of pupils with ADHD and similar disorders who find it difficult to concentrate normally, but when they’re on the laptop, with the headset and a voice talking to them all the time, it enables them to shut off everything else that is happening around them and they just go for it. They are now our top performing children in terms of the points they receive for their focus and attention and I couldn’t be more proud of them. They’re brilliant!

“If you know the children you want to support – if you have children who are lacking in confidence but who you know have the potential to make more rapid progress – then I would say definitely put them in for Third Space Learning, because the difference can be quite phenomenal!”

What changed

A really positive impact on our Year 6 attainment

We’ve seen a really positive impact on our Year 6 attainment and feel it’s a better way for us to spend our money

We started with 16 pupils in Year 6, in order to improve their confidence in the run up to the SATs tests. In many cases it definitely helped them to perform even better than we were expecting. Even for those where the impact wasn’t as great we could see that their confidence in approaching the papers was hugely improved, having seen lots of similar questions before in Third Space.

From a school perspective if you’re able to have 16 children having an individual intervention lesson at the same time, then that’s definitely better – and a better way to spend money – than having them all taken out one after the other. They have your own tutor on the end of the headset, the child is totally engaged and they have a good relationship with that person. In terms of what they can then come back into class and concentrate on doing…it’s really good stuff!

Gill Robertson, Headteacher, Holland Junior School

Watch a session in action

See how Skye guides pupils through a full one-to-one session.

Read more case studies

Fairfax Multi Academy Trust logo
Fairfax Multi Academy Trust
Birmingham · Secondary

“One fixed cost, four schools, and tutoring for every pupil on the intervention list”

Natalie Thompson, Academy Improvement Advisor for Maths and Numeracy
Measured impactMulti-academy trustGCSE results
Read case study →
St Giles Church of England Primary School logo
St Giles Church of England Primary School
Walsall · Primary

“From 59 pupils to 182 across Years 4 to 6, built into every maths lesson”

Simrat Mavi, Deputy Headteacher and SEND Lead
Pupil PremiumSENDFits the school day
Read case study →
De Lacy Primary School logo
De Lacy Primary School
Pontefract · Primary

“From 15 targeted pupils to the whole Year 6 cohort of 44, on one fixed cost”

Connor McMahon, Assistant Headteacher and Maths Lead
SATs resultsPupil PremiumMaths confidence
Read case study →

Would this work in your school?

Holland Junior School are a 167-pupil primary school in Oxted, Surrey.
Tell us your numbers and we will show you what the same approach covers in a school your size.

Request a tutoring quote for your school

Tutoring from Skye, our AI maths tutor, is available from just £3,500 per academic year, depending on your school size. Discounts are available for multi-year bookings and multi-academy trusts.
Get in touch today for a personalised quote and to set up a free taster session.

Maths tutoring trusted by 4,200+ schools since 2013

Unlimited one-to-one tutoring for one low fixed cost

Developed by maths teachers for maximum academic impact

Built using insights from 2,295,000+ one-to-one tutoring sessions in schools

Designed to improve SATs results

You can learn more about how we keep your data safe and secure in our privacy policy.