Funding announced for projects aimed at tackling learning gaps for disadvantaged pupils

The United Westminster and Grey Coat Foundation has today announced the winners of their Covid Catapult Fund.

The Covid Catapult Fund has been set up by the Foundation to help tackle the impact of Covid-19 across their schools. The funding has now been awarded to four projects proposed by staff across the Foundation’s five schools. These projects will help to tackle challenges raised by the global pandemic as well as the learning gap for disadvantaged pupils.

Members of staff across all the Foundation’s schools were encouraged to submit projects to be considered for funding which focused on supporting issues around one of three themes: mental resilience, the use of technology, and teacher training.

The projects which will be receiving funding were announced today at an online event hosted by the Foundation:

• Queen Anne’s School – who will receive a total of £5,000 to help support bursaries for disadvantaged music pupils to attend their new Music Academy programme on Saturdays.
• Emanuel School – have been granted £15,000 to support their first curriculum-sharing initiative, The Saturday Booster Programme. The Saturday Booster aims to close the disadvantaged gap for pupils in their local community who have been hardest hit by the impact of Covid-19 by providing them with additional education on Saturday mornings. The sessions will be run by staff at Emanuel School, as well as pupil volunteers from both Emanuel School and Westminster City School.
• Westminster City School – will receive £15,000 to assist in the development of their new tutoring programme. The programme aims to support pupils at GCSE and A-Level by providing them with recent alumni as tutors who can assist with preparation for university (including UCAS applications) and post-16 options.
• The Grey Coat Hospital – has been funded with £15,000 to support additional working days in school for the Mental Health Counsellor, to help re-build mental resilience amongst students. The primary focus of the two-year project will be to support Year 10 and 12 pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds who are in significant need of mental health support.

The online event was attended by internal and external stakeholders of the Foundation and also included a guest speech from Professor Anne Bamford, Strategic Director of Education, Skills, and Culture at the City of London Corporation.

Following the announcement today of the project winners, it was revealed that the Covid Catapult Fund will return next year to provide further opportunities for the Foundation’s young people who need support. Further details will be announced in due course.

Dr Gordon Carver, Chief Executive, The United Westminster and Grey Coat Foundation, said:

“The United Westminster and Grey Coat Foundation is delighted to today announce the school projects which will receive funding from our Covid Catapult Fund. All four projects are remarkable, and I am hugely excited to see the positive impacts they will have. We had some excellent submissions, and would have loved to be able to support all of the proposed projects.

“The impact Coivd-19 has had on the education sector over the past eight months has been overwhelming; therefore it is brilliant to be able to offer something back to help both the schools and young people who need it most, right at the time it is most needed.”