VOICE 21 IMPACT REPORT - 2016-2021 Empowering every child to use their voice to succeed in school and in life
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Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 1 VOICE 21 IMPACT REPORT 2016-2021 Empowering every child to use their voice to succeed in school and in life
Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 2 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 3
WELCOME FROM CEO politicians, parents and children and young
people themselves to champion the need for
deliberately targeting high-deprivation areas
with low levels of early language development.
universal access to oracy education. We have consolidated our range of programmes
into one unified approach,Voice 21 Oracy
A lot has changed in five years. What hasn’t Schools. Through this multi-year model, we
In 2016, Voice 21 set out on a mission to empower all changed is the central importance of oracy to will partner with schools to achieve long-
children and young people to use their voice for success children and young people’s outcomes, both term sustained change and build a strong
in learning and in their lives beyond school. collaborative network of educators committed
in school and in life. As Becky Francis, CEO of the Education to oracy education. The engine of our work will
Endowment Foundation, said recently, the be understanding the difference we are making
‘evidence of the power of talk is indisputable.’ and using that understanding to make more of
We knew that spoken language skills were one At the same time, we hoped to influence a difference, putting our impact at the heart of
of the strongest predictors of a child’s future life decision-makers to leverage their power to The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic provide everything we do.
chances yet too many children were not being create the conditions that would encourage a fresh impetus for Voice 21. Early indications
given the opportunities to develop these crucial all state schools to teach oracy as part of their suggest that school closures have contributed This impact report tells the story of Voice 21’s
skills, opportunities consistently afforded to an standard practice and curriculum. to a widening of the language gap. What’s journey to 2021. Behind the numbers are the
advantaged few. more, schools are increasingly recognising the voices of the thousands of teachers we have
Five years on, this impact report describes the role of oracy in helping students bounce back had the privilege to work with and the hundreds
For too long, oracy had been undervalued and progress we have made on these objectives. academically, socially and in their wellbeing. of thousands of pupils they serve. Their stories
overlooked within state education. It was time of how oracy transforms learning and life
for a change. Voice 21 has grown in scale and influence, Over the next five years, we want the oracy chances provide the momentum for our next five
working with thousands of schools across the education provided by our schools to become years of impact. We hope you will join us for this
Building on the pioneering practice of School UK. We have focused our support in those the norm, not the exception. We are growing next chapter.
21, we had an ambitious goal to grow from a communities that will most benefit from it, our reach to 1900 schools per annum to
programme within a single school into a national including targeted hubs in areas such as achieve this, serving over 800,000 pupils. We BECCY EARNSHAW,
movement of schools and teachers committed Liverpool, Tyneside, Leicester, Nottingham, will focus this growth in areas of high need, CEO, VOICE 21
to providing a high-quality oracy education to all. Camden, Tower Hamlets, The Black Country,
Ipswich and Knowsley, as well as projects
We aimed to make the case for oracy by serving Pupil Referral Units.
generating and sharing the evidence of
the difference oracy education makes to Through this work, we have gained new
children and young people’s outcomes and understanding of how our actions and
opportunities. We planned to train and support interventions can support teachers and schools
thousands of oracy teachers to act as the in providing a high-quality oracy education for
frontline in improving students’ speaking and their students and the barriers and opportunities
listening skills in state schools. We wanted they face in doing this. Our Oracy Benchmarks
to create an infrastructure of hubschools to encapsulate this insight, acting as a guide to
develop good practice and share this with other implementing oracy in any setting.
schools in their localities and dramatically boost
the body of resources, materials, guidance and We have also raised the profile of oracy –
support for oracy teaching. galvanising educationalists, business leaders,
“ The evidence of the power of talk is indisputable
School 21
Becky Francis, CEO, Education Endowment Foundation
Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 4 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 5
OUR MISSION
Voice 21 is the UK’s oracy education charity. We’re
on a mission to transform the learning and life
chances of young people through talk so that all ONLY 14%
of classroom teachers
children can use their voice for success in school say their school meets the
and in life. statutory National Curriculum
requirements for spoken
Despite widespread recognition of the importance of oracy, language “to a great extent”1
only a minority of schools have consistent, coherent or
adequately resourced provision to develop these skills in their
students. So, since 2016, we have been working in partnership
with teachers and schools across the UK to ensure every child
receives a high-quality oracy education.
WE HAVE DONE THIS BY:
Codifying what good oracy teaching and learning Focusing our work on those that
looks like and setting the standard for a high- need us most by working with
quality oracy education through the development schools serving the least
of our Oracy Benchmarks. advantaged communities.
Providing professional development and Convening cross sector support
specialist school improvement support to to raise the status of oracy through
empower schools to provide their students our position as secretariat of the
with a high-quality oracy education. Oracy All Party Parliamentary Group.
“
WHAT IS ORACY?
Oracy is the ability to articulate ideas, develop understanding and engage with others through
spoken language and listening.
In school, oracy is a powerful tool for learning; by teaching students to become more effective [Teachers] are the only second chance for some children
speakers and listeners we empower them to better understand themselves, each other and the
to have a rich language experience. If these children are
School 21
world around them. It is also a route to social mobility, empowering all students, not just some, to
find their voice to succeed in school and life. not getting it at school, they are not getting it.
Neil Mercer, Emeritus Professor of Education, University of Cambridge
Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 6 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 7
THE LAST FIVE YEARS The Oracy
Framework
SEPTEMBER 2020 321
is now used schools in
worldwide and has VOICE 21 ORACY SCHOOLS 2020-2021
been translated into
different languages LAUNCHED
including Welsh,
BEYOND THE LAST FIVE YEARS German, Italian Voice 21 Oracy Schools is the culmination of
and Arabic.
everything we have learned over the last five
2012 2015 years about how to effectively drive change
OCTOBER 2019 and improve oracy provision across a school.
SCHOOL 21 OPENS ITS DOORS EEF PILOT: ORACY CURRICULUM, Through our new model, we work strategically
CULTURE AND ASSESSMENT TOOLKIT THE ORACY BENCHMARKS
The founders of School 21, a pioneering free to develop leadership and practice of oracy
school in Stratford, East London, recognised the
PUBLISHED
An EEF pilot, in partnership with School 21 and Cambridge across a school, empowering schools to
importance of oracy, weaving it into the fabric The Oracy Benchmarks outline what Over
University shaped Voice 21’s approach to oracy education provide a high-quality oracy education for their
of this new school and providing a blueprint for in schools. As part of this pilot, the Oracy Framework was constitutes a high-quality oracy 1000 students and secure long-term change.
what an oracy education could look like. education, providing a robust and downloads
developed, demystifying oracy and empowering teachers to
teach their students this important skill. realistic framework for teachers and
school leaders looking to develop
oracy in their contexts.
SEPTEMBER 2019
NOVEMBER 2016
GET TALKING IN
THE STATE OF SPEAKING IN PRUS STARTS
“
OUR SCHOOLS PUBLISHED With funding from Nesta’s Future Ready Fund
The State of Speaking in Our Schools shone and The Dulverton Trust, we started this
a light on oracy practice in schools across Leading oracy in my JANUARY 2019 important programme to support students
the UK, finding that, whilst most teachers school has been a TRANSFORM TEACHING
excluded from mainstream education to
felt that oracy was critically important for career highlight improve their oracy skills, focusing particularly
their students, the majority had not received AND LEARNING THROUGH on developing emotional intelligence as well as
any training in oracy over the last three
National Oracy
Leader, 2018-2019
TALK: THE ORACY perceptions of self.
years and would not know where to look for IMPERATIVE PUBLISHED
more information if they wanted SEPTEMBER 2017
Our book codified Voice 21’s
767
young people
it. We set about changing this.
NATIONAL 95 approach to oracy teaching and reached in
first year
Including polling National learning, introducing Voice 21’s work
from over ORACY LEADERS Oracy Leaders
1000 PROGRAMME
trained since
2017
to a new audience of educators.
teachers and Over
school leaders LAUNCHED, IN 4000
CONJUNCTION WITH copies sold SEPTEMBER 2018
worldwide
UNIVERSITY OF VOICE LIVERPOOL GETS 75
schools
CAMBRIDGE UNDERWAY
Our Oracy Leaders Programme
Voice Liverpool, our first ‘Voice Area’ is
was designed to build
launched with the support of the SHINE
leadership capacity for oracy in
Trust. A three year partnership with schools
“
schools, as well as to create a
across the city to introduce lasting, locally-led
vanguard of educational leaders
change, improving students’ oral language,
spearheading a movement
confidence and wellbeing.
to raise the status of oracy in Every child
JUNE 2018 schools across the UK.
was able to
EEF RELEASES FINDINGS FROM speak in front SEPTEMBER 2018
VOICE 21’S ‘ORACY IMPROVEMENT of the class,
PROGRAMME’ 12 even one child ORACY PIONEERS
secondary who struggled PROGRAMME BEGINS
Our second EEF pilot which began in 2015 schools joined
investigated the feasibility of Voice 21’s approach
the pilot to answer the Recognising the importance of
beyond School 21. The EEF’s independent register at the expert oracy classroom practice, 1225
evaluator saw promise in our approach, noting that start of the year we began our Oracy Pioneers
Oracy Pioneers
trained to date
participating teachers felt students’ oracy skills had Sally Flynn,
Programme to embed high-quality
improved as a result of the pilot. Oracy Pioneer, 2019 oracy teaching in every classroom.
Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 8 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 9
WHY ORACY MATTERS
MORE THAN 17
MONTHS BEHIND MORE THAN TWICE AS
LIKELY TO BE UNEMPLOYED
AGE
3 On leaving school,
they are less likely to
find employment and AGE
more likely to suffer 34
from mental health
On entry to school, difficulties.
disadvantaged children’s
spoken language
development is significantly AGE “Children with poor
lower than their more 15 vocabulary at age five are
advantaged peers. more than twice as likely
4 TIMES LESS LIKELY TO to be unemployed at age
ATTAIN LEVEL 4 ENGLISH AND 34 as children with good
MATHS AT AGE 11 vocabulary (but similar
Researchers have non-verbal ability). They
studied UK children born are also one and a half
at the millennium. They found Left unaddressed,
AGE AGE
times more likely to have
that at age three, the language these gaps grow as
skills of children in the poorest children move through 5 11 mental health difficulties.” 6
20% of the population were, school.
on average, more than 17
months behind children in
the wealthiest 20%.2
When the progress of
children whose language
skills were ‘delayed’ at age 3
was tracked, researchers found
that household income matters.
Children in poverty were only half At school, children
as likely to catch up with their with poor language and Language skills
peers than ‘delayed’ children communication skills consistently emerge as
from richer households.3 are less likely to reach a strong predictor of student
expected levels attainment. Students who start
HALF AS LIKELY TO of attainment.
CATCH UP primary school with poor language
skills underperform in English and
maths, and have lower rates of school
enjoyment and confidence.4 At
secondary school, students’ GCSE
results (at age fifteen) can be
strongly predicted by their
vocabulary aged thirteen.5
“ “
Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 10 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 11
BENEFITS OF A HIGH-QUALITY
ORACY EDUCATION They [students] could
really see how improved
I think if I could do nothing else
oracy would impact on
for the children I teach, it would be
their lives. They could
that they leave able to articulate
see the connection with
“
their needs and their opinions
college interviews or
in a rational way. So they can be
going further in the world.
understood and they can engage
Oracy Lead, PRU, London with the world.
“
Teacher, PRU, Voice 21 Oracy School
What makes me enjoy
“
talking the most is that PROMOTES
everybody’s listening to SOCIAL
you, and you’re part of EQUITY
To actually see tangible the world, and you feel
outcomes in mathematics, respected and important.
particularly in reasoning,
which is an area that Milo, Year 3, School 21 Oracy
has traditionally been a narrows gaps,
Planned oracy outcomes SUPPORTS EQUIPS STUDENTS
enabling less
have allowed children who challenge for us, has been TRANSITIONS TO THRIVE IN
advantaged
struggle with printed text to very exciting and we’ve now AND ENHANCES DEMOCRATIC
students to fulfil
access subject content in a seen those improvements EMPLOYABILITY & CIVIC LIFE their potential.12
deeper and more meaningful in other areas of the
way. I have been thrilled curriculum as well.
with the level of engagement Jeremy Pentreath, Headteacher, Oracy helps Citizenship
The Oaks Primary School
in lessons. It has been young people requires us to
delightful to hear every flourish in further/ express our views
child’s voice and to see their IMPROVES FOSTERS higher education or & listen kindly and
self-confidence soar as ACADEMIC CONFIDENCE employment.10 critically.11
they recognised that others OUTCOMES AND WELLBEING
valued that voice.
National Oracy Pioneer, Bristol
Students Students
INCREASES think critically build successful
ENGAGEMENT IN and reason relationships and
LEARNING together.8 realise their voice
has value.9
HIGH-QUALITY
ORACY Learning
EDUCATION is rich and
enjoyable when
students bring their
own voice and
experiences
to school life.7
Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 12 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 13
WHAT IS A HIGH-QUALITY CASE STUDY:
ORACY EDUCATION? MADANI SCHOOLS
FEDERATION
“At Madani, we use the School
In 2019, Voice 21 published the Oracy Benchmarks, codifying what good oracy Benchmarks as a top-down tool to
teaching and learning looks like and setting the standard for a high-quality oracy look at oracy alongside and within
our strategic documents and then to
education. share information with all staff.
As a result of this approach, our
TEACHER BENCHMARKS SCHOOL BENCHMARKS
Strategic Plan now takes the School
Benchmarks as a starting point. For
SETS HIGH EXPECTATIONS
FOR ORACY
1 HAS AN AMBITIOUS
VISION FOR ORACY
example, we knew from our learning
walks and internal self-review
that pupils did not always have
VALUES
EVERY VOICE
2 BUILDS A CULTURE
OF ORACY
many varied opportunities to talk
and discuss in lessons across the
curriculum or in assemblies.
TEACHES ORACY
EXPLICITLY
3 HAS A SUSTAINED & WIDE-RANGING
CURRICULUM FOR ORACY
When we looked at the benchmarks,
we could see Benchmark 3: The
school has a sustained and wide-
HARNESSES ORACY TO ELEVATE
LEARNING 4 RECOGNISES ORACY AS
CENTRAL TO LEARNING
ranging curriculum for oracy and
recognises oracy as central to
learning.
APPRAISES PROGRESS
IN ORACY 5 IS ACCOUNTABLE FOR
THE IMPACT OF ORACY
This enabled us to begin planning
key actions and measurable
outcomes. This information was
then built on with all stakeholders at
Student Council, Parent Carer Coffee
Mornings, SLT, House meetings,
WHY DID WE DEVELOP THE ORACY HOW ARE WE USING THE
Department meetings and even
BENCHMARKS? ORACY BENCHMARKS TO
Governors' meetings.
Our 2016 report, The State of Speaking in Our SUPPORT OUR MISSION?
Schools, found that teachers and school leaders did The Oracy Benchmarks are now We were then able to measure our
not have a good understanding of what constitutes a central to our Theory of Change; our success against the Benchmarks
high-quality oracy education and, as a result, lacked work with schools is designed to and report this back to stakeholders
the confidence to provide their students with one. By support teachers and school leaders for their ongoing feedback.”
clearly articulating shared expectations for oracy in to meet the Oracy Benchmarks,
CHAITAN RAJANIA,
schools, we empower teachers and school leaders to providing a high-quality oracy ASSISTANT HEAD,
provide the oracy education their students both need education and, as a result, improving MADANI SCHOOLS FEDERATION
and deserve. their students’ oracy skills.
Madani Schools Foundaiton
Find out more about
the Madani Schools
Federation’s oracy
journey with our
You can read our full report The Oracy Benchmarks here. video case study.
Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 14 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 15
T ER
OUR WORK EI
CE
S
Voice
L
Leicester is a
E
From this, we
IC
three-year programme
then built capacity to
VO
to improve oracy provision
lead oracy, culminating in
across the city’s primary
specialist support in the final
RA and secondary schools. The
TS O CY HU year of the programme for 10
LE B Find out
It’s something that has re-
focus of the first year was on
AM more about the Hub Schools, enabling them to
building a strong foundation
experience of Tower I listened to the Teacher invigorated my teaching! [...] of excellent classroom
mobilise their successes so
H
Founded in 2019, Hamlets Oracy Hub,
Masterclasses on my I’m doing it because I want to far to support other schools
ER
with professional including their resource practice in 30+ schools
way to work each day. hear what students have to say. in the city to sustain and
TOW
“Keeping Oracy across the city.
development from Voice Going”, here. O CTOBER It was reassuring to I’ve seen the excitement and grow their oracy
21 from 2019-20. We worked
A CY see that our vision was the passion, and the life that provision.
with 47 teachers in 26 schools
As part of supported by other students have
299 49
OR
to develop the Hub’s oracy teachers
expertise, creating a legacy of Oracy October people schools
Paul Butler, Voice 21 School Lead,
excellent classroom practice 2020, we hosted New College Leicester
that continues to be built a series of Teacher Danielle Burns,
Masterclasses, enabling Voice 21 School
on today. Lead, The Halifax
teachers to learn from Academy
It has been exciting to what was happening
see the profile of oracy in each other’s
grow in the borough classrooms.
Nicky Pear, Cubitt Town
Junior School, Co-Founder CUMULATIVE &
of the Tower Hamlets Oracy Hub PROGRESSIVE EVIDENCE- &
LAYERED CONTEXT-DRIVEN
Each stage builds
We engage both on the last with defined We support schools
teachers and leaders milestones to maintain to navigate what
in order to secure momentum. works and apply this
whole-school impact. to their context.
LONG-TERM
COLLABORATIVE
We create the conditions
We foster inter-school
for long-term change that IMPACT-LED collaboration through peer IN G T E A C H
continues to thrive beyond ER ER
We monitor each school’s learning, practice sharing W
our intervention. O
progress and adapt our and network events. ID E T O I M P L
S
P
U
EM
EM
SG
support accordingly. Our expert team
L’ EN empowers teachers
O
to apply the body of
HO
TA
‘While dedicated evidence supporting
TI
SC
leadership of oracy in schools to
ON
C H M AR K REP
EEF: A
implementation is key, it is their own context.
N
BE OR also important to recognise that
Y T implementation is a complex
C This year we
S
process that requires leadership at
A
have surveyed staff She [Voice 21 team member]
OR
different levels of the school; that
and students in Voice 21
is, dedicated but distributed
helped us see it isn’t just an
Oracy Schools, providing each
leadership’ (EEF Guidance approach you stick to rigidly;
school with a comprehensive
Report, 2019) oracy is a concept to be adapted
report about their school’s starting depending on your setting,
point for oracy. At the end of the
because it’s not going to be ‘one
year, each school will receive a
further report detailing their
size fits all’ in a school.
school’s progress towards Jonny Townend, Assistant Principal &
Maths Lead, Whetley Academy
meeting the Oracy
Benchmarks.
Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 16 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 17
WHERE ARE OUR SCHOOLS? As not all of the regions of the UK contain the same number of schools, we also pay attention to the
proportion of all state schools we work with in each region. This table shows you a comparison of
those different rankings.
This map shows the distribution of NUMBER OF RANKED BY NUMBER OF RANKED BY PROPORTION OF ALL
schools we work with across the UK, SCHOOLS: SCHOOLS WE WORK WITH SCHOOLS IN THAT REGION THAT
from 2018 to the present day. As (MOST TO LEAST) WE WORK WITH (MOST TO LEAST)
the national oracy charity, we have 200
worked across the UK and have not 1. North West 1. Wales
been limited by geographical region.
150 2. South East 2. North West
However, we use the percentage
of students eligible for free school 3. Wales 3. North East
meals, Index of Multiple Deprivation 100 4. South West 4. South West
and the percentage of students 5. London 5. East Midlands
reaching ‘at least expected’ Early
50 6. East Midlands 6. Yorkshire and The Humber
Learning Goals in the Early Years
Foundation Stage to identify in which 7. Yorkshire and The Humber 7. South East
25 8. West Midlands 8. London
areas we particularly want to work.
71 9. North East 9. West Midlands
VOICE
AREA 10. East of England 10. East of England
OUR VOICE AREAS:
212 11. Scotland 11. Scotland
Voice Bradford 2017-19
Voice Plymouth 2017-19 101
Voice North of Tyne 2017-20 Voice
Voice Camden 2018-19
Voice Ipswich
Voice Pendle
2018-19
2018-19
101 HOW MANY STUDENTS HAVE WE REACHED?
Voice Dundee 2018-20
Voice Leicester 2018-21 79 68
Voice Liverpool 2018-21 138 Since 2017, when we
Voice Black Country 2019-21 launched our first national
Voice Knowsley 2019-21 109 290,000
150 oracy programme, we’ve students
Voice Nottingham 2019-21
worked with over 10,000
Voice Blackburn 2019-22 126
with Darwen teachers, 1200 schools and
through them, improved the oracy
education of over 290,000 students. 10,000
teachers
We’ve worked with schools from nurseries to
sixth-form colleges, from Plymouth to Dundee, in
VOICE AREAS
mainstream and Alternative Provision (AP) settings.
Voice Areas are programmes which last between 1-3 years, involving at least 12 We’re proud of this breadth, because we believe all 1200
schools, but in some cases many more, for example Voice Liverpool included 75 students are entitled to a high-quality oracy education.
schools
schools. Schools across the area receive professional development to improve
oracy classroom practice and leadership, as well as support to create a network
of hub schools to sustain and grow oracy excellence beyond the programme.
Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 18 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 19
OUR TARGET POPULATION
Voice 21 exists to serve those
EDUCATION ENDOWMENT
children and young people who are FOUNDATION
least likely to develop the oracy skills The Education Endowment Foundation (EEF)
they need to succeed in school and in is dedicated to breaking the link between
life and are least likely to have access family income and educational achievement.
They do this through commissioning and
to a high-quality oracy education. making accessible the best available
research. Voice 21 has worked with them
As a result, we aim to work with schools to assess the impact and feasibility of our
with a greater proportion of economically approach in schools, as part of our drive to
disadvantaged students. Our measure for ensure we are meeting the needs of our target
this is whether schools are in the top 40% population in an evidence-informed way.
of schools with the greatest proportion of
students eligible for Free School Meals Our 2015 developmental study (Voice 21
(N.B. using data from January 2020, this is worked with Cambridge University, with
currently schools with more than 17% of independent evaluation from Sheffield
students eligible). Hallam University) led to the creation of the
Oracy Framework, and the development
This does not mean we will not work with of an approach to oracy professional
schools falling outside this range – our development and school change which was
programmes are open to all UK state schools. subject to further evaluation in a second
Rather than being a prescriptive requirement, EEF-funded study. This study (2018) found
this measure informs planning and prioritising evidence of promise for the ‘Voice 21 Oracy
towards meeting our charitable mission. Improvement Programme’, with teachers
reporting improvements to students’ oracy
skills; confidence; relationships between
70%
PERCENTAGE OF SCHOOLS IN OUR TARGET POPULATION
students, and between students and
62%
VOICE 21 teachers; wellbeing; listening skills and their
TARGET
2021–2022 subsequent impact on learning.
VOICE 21
ONWARDS
SCHOOLS
The EEF reports that overall, oral language
2018 –
PRESENT interventions generate “moderate impacts
40%
DAY* for very low cost, based on extensive
evidence”, with additional impact for students
ALL UK from disadvantaged backgrounds. They
SCHOOLS
recommend oracy as an evidence-based
approach to improving literacy at both
primary and secondary level.
The Oaks Primary School
*This figure shows the proportion of schools meeting the
historic threshold of more than 15% of students eligible for
free school meals, which represents the top 40% of schools
as of 2018-19.Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 20 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 21
WHO ARE OUR SCHOOLS?
We work across phases WHO ARE OUR SCHOOLS – PHASE
and school types, with PRIMARY SECONDARY
programmes designed to
VOICE 21
80% 20%
promote both cross-phase SCHOOLS
/cross-type collaboration
and peer-to-peer learning. ALL UK
83% 17%
SCHOOLS
For example, we have run
programmes designed to enable
secondary schools and their WHO ARE OUR SCHOOLS – TYPE
local feeder primary schools to
MAINSTREAM SPECIAL 2.4% PRUS 1.3%
develop a shared approach to
oracy to better support students
VOICE 21
through transition; ‘Get Talking 96.3%
SCHOOLS
in PRUs’, offered teachers
in PRUs and AP settings the
opportunity to come together
ALL UK
as a single national cohort for a 93.8%
SCHOOLS
rare opportunity to network and
develop their practice together. MAINSTREAM SPECIAL 4.6% PRUS 1.6%
GET TALKING IN PRUS
We launched ‘Get Talking in PRUs’ in order to improve the representation of Pupil
Referral Units (PRUs) amongst the schools we work with. PRUs are a high-need,
intensive context for Voice 21, serving a population of students with high rates
of behavioural, emotional and mental health needs, and both diagnosed and
undiagnosed speech, language and communication needs.
Between 2019-2021, we have worked with 25 PRUs and Alternative Provision (AP) settings,
focusing on improving students’ well-being & social/emotional competencies by developing each
setting’s capacity to deliver a high-quality oracy education.
Read the evaluation report for the first year of ‘Get Talking in PRUs’ here.
Bishop Young Academy
I’ve been observing a debate between the [primary-age] children and they’ve been able to go,
‘I agree on this point but I disagree on this point’, and things like that might seem little to a lot
of people but for children who find it really difficult to self-regulate, being able to voice that
they disagree on some things without getting really upset is huge, so that’s been wonderful.
Oracy Lead, small PRU, LondonVoice 21 Impact Report 2021 22 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 23
UNDERSTANDING OUR IMPACT 2020 ONWARDS
We’re looking forward to being able to
report on our first cohorts of Voice 21 Oracy Voice 21 Schools starting from September 2020
Schools, who began their journey with onwards also completed oracy surveys with
LEGACY SURVEY RESULTS us in September 2020 and January 2021. all their staff, and a sample of students. This
Voice 21 has probably shaped our learning Like all schools, both cohorts have faced baseline data will be an essential part of our
and professional practice more than any other We surveyed teachers who had considerable challenges due to Covid-19. understanding of impact in the years to come.
programme in recent years. completed a programme of Here’s a preview of their journeys so far.
professional development with
Jonathan Rees, Oracy Pioneer 2018-19
Voice 21 by the end of 2020. We survey all our Voice 21 School Leads
(the teachers we’re working with to So far we’ve received baseline oracy surveys from:
Over the past five years, we have combined RACY E
T YO DU implement oracy in their schools) termly.
LI
independent evaluations with an approach which Here you can see the responses from 97 7300+ STAFF 23,600+ STUDENTS
UA
C
90%
AT
School Leads, from their first one or two
empowered teachers to conduct classroom
A H IG H- Q
IO
of teachers agree/ terms as Voice 21 Schools.
strongly agree that
N
research as a means of understanding the impact “Working with Voice 21
increased my capacity
of oracy in their contexts. to deliver a high-quality
oracy education” SCHOOL LEAD SURVEY RESULTS
As we move into the next five years, we are building 60%
on this approach, retaining a focus on teachers as
strongly
N E SUPPO A R NI N G ( D E S PIT E C O
agree
-O R LE SS VI
evidence-informed decision-makers, but deepening our C HO OL E
R
NS
O
NE
95% 91%
T
I
-T
D
mixed-methods evaluation approach to gain a richer
OG
T 48%
)
O N LI
ONE
rated the support rated our online
understanding of our impact, enabling more reliable year-
PR
N
they’d received learning platform as reported that they had made
EN GAGE ME
on-year comparisons. 77% from their Oracy good or excellent as much or more progress
Improving my oracy
Consultant as
good/excellent 47.5% (44% good +47%
excellent) 44% as they had planned. We’ve
been able to use this data to
practice resulted in good good implement additional support
improvements in my
for those of our schools who
THE DOUGLAS BARNES PRIZE students’ engagement
were most affected by
in school
26% 47.5% 47% Covid-19.
In 2020 we launched the Douglas excellent excellent
strongly
Barnes Prize. Jointly judged with agree
Oracy Cambridge, the prize is TC O MES
awarded annually* to a teacher from OU
IC
our network for the most innovative,
EM
reflective and well-designed classroom research into 76%
ACAD
agree/strongly agree
oracy teaching and learning. Inspired by academic that Improving my oracy
and researcher Douglas Barnes, this prize celebrates practice resulted
in improvements
the achievement of teachers who, following in Barnes’ in my students’
footsteps, use their classroom to carry out small-scale academic 38%
outcomes strongly
research which furthers understanding of oracy. agree
The inaugural winner, Rachel Mayes, explored the
impact of explicit teaching of discussion skills, using E IN G
LB
transcripts to show qualitative changes to the nature of
L
WE
her students’ talk. 68%
The Oaks Primary School
agree/strongly agree
*We suspended the prize in 2021, to reflect the impact of Covid-19 on that Improving my oracy
teachers’ capacity to carry out classroom research. It will return in 2022. practice resulted in
improvements in
my students’
wellbeing 23%
You can read the winning and highly strongly
commended reports here. agree
n=53Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 24 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 25
“
OUR INFLUENCE
Genuinely inspiring – thank you
We want everyone to know that a Attendee, Great Oracy Exhibition, 2018
high-quality oracy education transforms
the learning and life chances of young
people.
In 2016, we started to spread the word by
inviting people into School 21 to see for
themselves. Five years later, we’re proud to be
an independent and leading charity that has
“
built a network of schools across the UK who
share their practice far and wide, seizing every
opportunity they can to inspire others to join
them on their oracy journeys.
Oh my goodness
– what amazing
Watch our first ever online speakers [Year 4
Teacher Masterclass here, ‘spark’ speeches]
featuring three teachers
– gave me shivers
sharing how they provide
their students with a high- to listen to them!
quality oracy education. Attendee, Great Oracy
Exhibition, 2018
PEOPLE REACHED THROUGH EVENTS
+2175
online ORACY ALL-PARTY PARLIAMENTARY GROUP
Voice 21 provides the secretariat to the Oracy All-Party Parliamentary
Group, which recently published its final report from the Speak for
1502 Change Inquiry, summarising evidence submitted by hundreds of
contributors from the education sector, businesses and academia, as
well as individual teachers, parents, children and young people.
907 The report highlights the many benefits of oracy education and the
detrimental impacts of a lack of provision on those that need it most.
742*
We welcome its recommendations, which detail the changes needed
in the education system to ensure every child receives their entitlement
70 to a high-quality oracy education, particularly its calls for greater
investment in teacher development for oracy and new non-statutory
guidance from the Department for Education.
2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 2019-20
You can read more about Speak for Change here.
*2018-19 marks the launch of the National Oracy Pioneers. We ran fewer events as we focused on deepening our impact
through the Pioneers programme.Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 26 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 27
COVID-19 AND SCHOOL CLOSURES RESOURCES
Throughout the pandemic we have responded to the needs of
schools, creating resources to support teachers to continue to
prioritise oracy during school closures and despite challenges such
as social distancing and mask wearing. Take a look
When the country locked down in March 2020, we were at a previous
unable to continue working with schools in-person. edition of Talk on
receive our weekly Talk on Tuesday email packed Tuesday here.
over 1000
However, school closures, continued disruption to learning and the teachers
associated impact on young people’s mental health and wellbeing, 7 in 10 teachers said with oracy ideas, inspiration and resources.
teaching online had a negative
attainment and language and communication skills meant that impact on opportunities for
ensuring all students had access to a high-quality oracy education developing students’ oracy.13
was particularly vital.
OUR RESPONSE
FREE EVENTS SERIES FOR ALL TEACHERS
In March 2020 we launched a series of free online events to
66% of primary teachers
said school closures during
support teachers and school leaders to prioritise oracy during the pandemic had a negative
the period of school closures and beyond. effect on the spoken language
development of students
eligible for free school meals.14
10 2175 80%
free online unique of attendees
events attendees new to Voice 21
ORACY OCTOBER
ONLINE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT Since 2018, we’ve held the Great Oracy Exhibition,
gathering in School 21 for a showcase of oracy
Since March 2020, we have shifted all of our professional teaching and learning, panels and debates. In
development online, ensuring we are able to continue our work 2019, this event was attended by 500+ teachers
with teachers and schools. from around the UK. In 2020, Covid-19 made it
impossible to gather in this way, so we went online.
As well as live learning sessions led by expert members of our We launched Oracy October, a two-week virtual
team, schools have had access to our online learning space, festival of oracy, with daily live events and an online
‘The Voice 21 Exchange’, facilitating self-led community space for attendees to access sessions
learning and collaboration between schools. at their own pace.
449 teachers
took our blended Over 4000 During
learning module, teachers on the Voice I felt really deflated about oracy in my school at the Oracy October
‘Reintegration through 21 Exchange start of this year, then I started watching the Oracy our tweets
Over 250 Oracy’ to support 750 were seen
Development Days October Masterclasses and I feel so inspired again.
delivered online since
their students to
transition successfully I am going to re-watch them all and use the key attendees 175.6k
March 2020 back to school life. messages to create CPD for all my staff times
Oracy October attendee, 2020Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 28 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 29
NEXT STEPS THANK YOU
With the launch of our school-improvement model, First and foremost, we are so grateful to our incredible network of schools. It is
We will continue
‘Voice 21 Oracy Schools’ in 2020/21, we are looking to focus our work on
thanks to the dedication, commitment and ambition of their teachers and leaders
forward to ensuring more students than ever have those that need us most, that we are able to showcase the impact of our work.
access to a high-quality oracy education. ensuring that 70% of schools
we work with are in the top We would also like to thank our parent organisation, Big Education, and all of our supporters, past
40% of state-funded schools and present, including individuals and organisations who wish to remain anonymous.
in England and Wales based
In 2021/22, we on percentage of students • Impetus • Gwyneth Forrester Trust
eligible for Free School
will be working
Meals (FSM).
• Education Endowment Foundation • The Drapers’ Charitable Fund
with over 650
schools, reaching
• Big Change • Oxford University
By 2025, we will • Minton Charitable Trust • Fidelity Foundation
more than 280k
grow our reach to
students.
over 800k students • SHINE • Allen & Overy Foundation
in 1900 schools. • Education Endowment Foundation • John Horseman Trust
• The Dulverton Trust • Leathersellers’ Company Charitable Fund
To expand our
• NESTA • Bain & Company
After a
work in the areas of successful first
greatest need, we have year of ‘Voice 21 And last but not least, to our wider network of friends, colleagues and collaborators who champion
identified target areas for Oracy Schools’, we are the case for oracy and work alongside us to achieve even greater impact.
growth based on an analysis of further enhancing our support
economic deprivation and social to schools by increasing our
mobility indicators, as well as early provision of resources and events,
language levels. Our target area for expanding our online platform and
growth in 2021/22 is the North- strengthening the Voice 21 Oracy
West where 44.05% of Schools Network to build more
schools are in our target school-to-school
population. connections.
To help us further Over the next
refine our model to three years we will
ensure we are having the work towards having a
greatest possible impact on reliable measure of student
students in our target population, oracy to ensure our intervention
we will be using data gathered leads to improved oracy outcomes
each year to better understand in students within our target
which elements of our population. This will begin
intervention most effectively with a pilot student
accelerate progress outcomes project in
in schools.
School 21
2021/22.Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 30 Voice 21 Impact Report 2021 31
REFERENCES FINAL WORD
1
2
‘Oracy after the pandemic: what Ofsted, teachers
and young people think about oracy’, (CFEY, 2021)
Law, J., King, T., Rush, R. 2014. An analysis of
early years and primary school age language and
literacy data from the millennium cohort study.
Newcastle University & Save the Children.
9 Alexander, R. (2008) Towards Dialogic Teaching:
Rethinking Classroom Talk, Fourth Edition. York:
Dialogos UK.
Akerman, R., Neale, I. (2011) Debating the
Evidence: An International Review of Current
Situation and Perceptions. Reading: CfBT
Education Trust.
“ It was revolutionary!
Angela Crawley, National Oracy Leader, 2019-2020
I have a student who is so
self conscious, she often gets
very upset when asked to
answer questions. During her
time with me, she managed
to write and present a speech
whilst stood in front of her
3 ibid. whole class.
10 de Vries, R., Rentfrow, J. (2016). A Winning The results have been incredible. We now see
4 Moss, G and Washbrook, E (2016) The Gender Gap Personality: The Effects of Background on children enthused by their learning and willing Elizabeth Bloor, National Oracy
Leader, 2019-20
in Language and literacy Development. Bristol: Uni Personality and Earnings. London: The Sutton to take part and volunteer information.
of Bristol Trust.
Ashley, L., Duberley, J., Sommerlad, H. &
Channelle Owen, Oracy Pioneer, 2018-19 The group of students that we often see great
5 Spencer, S., Clegg, J., Stackhouse, J. and Rush,
Scholarios, D. (2015). A Qualitative Evaluation of results in are the children who we had thought
R., 2017. Contribution of spoken language and
Non-Educational Barriers to the Elite Professions. to be quiet and reluctant to speak. The fact was,
socio-economic background to adolescents’ For [...our] more vulnerable that they needed to be taught these skills and
educational achievement at age 16 years. London: Social Mobility and Child Poverty pupils, devoting time
Commission we have empowered them to use their voices.
International journal of language & communication exclusively to the development
disorders, 52(2), pp.184-196. 11 Deakin Crick, R., Coates, M., Taylor, M. and of oracy skills has not only Voice Camden participant, 2018-19
Ritchie, S. (2004) ‘A Systematic Review of the supported their academic
6 Talking about a Generation, The Communication
Impact of Citizenship Education on the Provision progress, it has also had a
Trust, 2017. P. 11
positive impact on wellbeing. I love working with Voice 21. I like oracy because even
of Schooling’, Research Evidence in Education The staff are exceptional and [though] people disagree with
7 Kutnik,P. & Berdondini, L. (2009). ‘Can the Library, London: EPPI-Centre, Social Science Programme participant, 2019-2020 so helpful, knowledgeable and you they [don’t] say it [...in] a
enhancement of group working in classrooms Research Unit, Institute of Education. supportive. fierce way
provide a basis for effective communication in
support of school‐based cognitive achievement in 12 Waldfogel, J. Washbrook, E. (2010). Low Income Oracy has totally rejuvenated Bev Knuckey, National Oracy Leader, Year 5 student,
classrooms of young learners?’,Cambridge Journal and Early Cognitive Development in the UK, my practice and given me a 2018-19 Voice 21 Oracy School
of Education, 39(1),71-94. London: Sutton Trust. whole new way of looking at
and facilitating the learning of
Chiu, M. M. (2004) ‘Adapting Teacher Interventions
to Student Needs During Cooperative Learning:
The Communication Trust (2013), A Generation
Adrift. London: The Communication Trust all my students. I sometimes struggle to get all my ideas
How to Improve Student Problem Solving and 13 ‘Oracy after the pandemic: what Ofsted, teachers
Lindsay Vaughan, Voice Camden, written into my work. In oracy, I am able to
share my ideas and get ideas from others.
2018-19
Time On-Task’, American Educational Research and young people think about oracy’, (CFEY, 2021)
Journal, 41(2), 365-399.
14 ibid. Year 5 student, Voice 21 Oracy School
8 For a recent review of the research evidence see
Mercer, N., and Mannion, J. (2018) ‘Oracy across
the Welsh Curriculum’. Oracy Cambridge. I am amazed by the quality of dialogue and Before we’d have really, really structured play,
ambitious vocabulary the children are using. which helped them with their behaviour because
Education Endowment Foundation (2021)
The children are able to listen effectively and obviously most of them are with us because
‘Teaching and Learning Toolkit’. Available online
respond with meaning. I love that they are of their behaviour. What we’ve been able to do
at: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/
talking in class and that this is having a massive is kind of loosen that – they would never have
evidence-summaries/teaching-learning-toolkit/
impact on their writing. role-played before but they’re now able to.
Leanne Jones, Oracy Pioneer 2018-19 Oracy Lead, PRU, NE England
If you don’t speak, then how are you going to learn?
How are you going to teach other people and how are
you going to learn yourself?
Student, The Oaks Primary SchoolVoice 21 Impact Report 2021 32
www.voice21.org
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