23rd May 2013

VIVO HELPS SCHOOLS CLOSE THE ATTAINMENT GAP

The Pupil Premium (PP) fund, intended to address inequalities between pupils on free school meals (FSM) and their peers, has been hotly debated since its introduction in 2011. According to Ofsted, one of the main barriers to effective use of PP (£623 per pupil on FSM, increasing to £900 in 2013) is that schools lack the systems for tracking how the fund is spent and evaluating the effectiveness of their efforts.

Then last month the Schools Minister, David Laws weighed in, accusing schools in some of the most affluent parts of the country of failing pupils from poor families (who are getting better exam results in deprived areas).

As a result, many schools are turning to rewards platforms like Vivo to help close the gap. The award-winning recognition and rewards platform is still the most powerful, measurable and cost-effective tool available to teachers. Proactive use ofVivo in schools has been shown to dramatically increase attendance, reduce exclusions and improve general attitude and behaviours by rewarding achievement, encouraging peer promotion and collaborative learning.

The Duston School in Northampton, who recently received a letter from the Deputy Prime Minister congratulating them on PP student performance, have seen a significant improvement in behaviours since adopting Vivo since 2009. “There is no doubt that Vivo is one of the tools in our toolbox which has helped us to motivate and encourage all of our students,” says Gill Salver, Deputy Head. “Overall, we have seen huge improvements in attendance, engagement and achievement and a reduction in exclusions.”

Duston’s hands-on approach to implementing Vivo is key to its success. “We integrate Vivo into daily life, including Assembly, staff training sessions, newsletters to parents, info on our website and having a Vivo notice board. We ask departmental line managers to ensure all staff promote Vivo and top rewarders are praised in the staff bulletin,” says Salver.

St Julie’s Catholic High School in Liverpool allocates their PP to Vivos through discount vouchers for school trips, equipment and extra food. As a result, they have seen an improvement attendance and behaviours - especially with their ‘Golden Ticket’voucher for Alton Towers.

Vivo also makes the reporting element of PP easier. A new feature introduced this month will enable administrators to separate results of pupils on FSM out from the others. “Schools need to justify how they spend it and Vivo just makes that process more streamlined,” explains Ian Pedler, Deputy Head at Magna Carta school. “We have seen a definite increase in attendance and better behaviour and the link between attendance and attainment is undeniable.”

The Ofsted report 2013 highlights Collaborative Learning as one of the key elements implemented by schools who successfully allocate their PP. Better communication between teachers, students and parents is critical to individual development and Vivo enables parents to keep up to date with their child’s progress and to reward them.

Some ways Vivo can assist schools in closing the gap:

  • Average increase in attendance of 6%.
  • Greater feedback from teachers enables greater student development.
  • Marked decrease in administration for teachers (when compared to in-house rewards solutions).
  • With real-time reporting and updates.
  • Promoting collaborative learning: Vivo makes it easier for parents to follow and reward their child’s progress.
  • The ‘virtuous circle of learning’ effect: rewards lead to improvement in general attitude, behaviour and intrinsic motivation.

-Ends-

Notes to editors:

  • Finalist in the 2012 BETT Award, ICT Company of the Year.
  • Vivo Rewards won the 2011 Education Investor award for Use of Technology.
  • Vivo Rewards won the 2010 BETT Award winner for Best Leadership and Management Solution.

About Vivo Rewards Ltd:

Founded in 2009, Vivo Rewards provides a range of online reward solutions to the educational sector and the wider community. Over a million students and teachers in England and Wales now use Vivo across from in over 500 schools, including many of the most prestigious new academies. It has strategic partnerships with the leading ICT providers to education, including all the leading MIS and VLE manufacturers.

The company has a growing customer base in Australia and Scotland, alongside rewards and recognition products for other markets including primary schools, FE and HE colleges, not-for-profit organisations and the wider community

Media contact:

Vivo Rewards

2nd Floor

1 Leicester Square

London

WC2H 7NA

T: +44 (0)20 31172570

Email: