St Julian’s Primary School will use funding to create Home Visit Packs for approximately 55 disadvantaged Year 6 learners and their families, supporting a positive and proactive transition into Year 7. Before learners begin secondary school, staff will visit families at home, providing each learner with essential equipment including stationery, revision materials and a scientific calculator, alongside information about the school’s support for attendance, wellbeing, pastoral care and families eligible for free school meals.
The project aims to remove practical barriers that can affect learners before they even begin secondary education. Providing essential equipment at the outset will help ensure disadvantaged learners are equipped and ready to learn alongside their peers, while the home visits will create an opportunity for schools and families to establish positive relationships from the very beginning.
The visits will also provide staff with an opportunity to identify potential barriers to a successful transition, including concerns around attendance, anxiety, uniform, wellbeing or wider family circumstances. By identifying these needs early, the school can offer appropriate support before challenges become more difficult to address.
Building relationships with families before September will help learners feel welcomed, valued and supported as they prepare for a significant change in their education. The project aims to strengthen communication between home and school, increase families’ confidence in accessing support and help disadvantaged learners develop a stronger sense of belonging.
By combining practical support with early relationship-building, St Julian’s Primary School is taking a proactive approach to transition, helping learners begin secondary education with greater confidence, readiness and access to the support they need to thrive.