Our poorest children are being shut out of future opportunities

Picture this - you’ve had six months away from the office. You tried to get your work done at home but you had no laptop, no internet access and no quiet space. You get back to the office and realise your teammates had what they needed to stay on track. They’re ready. You’re not.

That’s the reality that millions of poorer young people are facing after a year in and out of the classroom. Back in school, they’re alongside classmates who had what they needed to keep learning in lockdown.

Before COVID-19 you only had half the chance of getting good grades at school if you are growing up in a poor community. The odds just got much tougher.

This isn’t just about fairness, it’s also bad for the economy. Four years after the last global crash, more than one in five young people were left unemployed. For this generation, getting a good job will be hard. And without good grades – it’ll be nearly impossible.

We're asking you to donate towards our Shut In Not Shut Out campaign to make sure no potential is wasted as a result of the pandemic.

Why we need your support now

COVID-19 closed schools for a few months, but its impact will last a lifetime. We’re already seeing the shocking impact it’s having on the poorest children.

There’s a learning divide growing and we urgently need your financial support to close it. Join a growing group determined to stop the country’s most disadvantaged children from being shut of a fair future.

See who’s already supported our campaign.

10 years of progress

needed to close the attainment gap lost due to school closures. (source)

34% of learning lost

for poorer secondary school pupils due to COVID-19. (source)

Problems like this won’t go away once we’re out of lockdown. The school system will need support for at least seven more years. So whilst the world will go back to normality on the surface there will be much to be done for those who are disadvantaged.

Jason Ashley,

Headteacher at Redbridge Community School Southampton

How you'll help

Your donation can ensure a fair future for thousands of children by:

Funding Leading Together

By supporting our flagship leadership programme, you'll impact the lives of children over the long-term as we build sustainable partnerships with schools, coaching and developing the leadership team so they can close the learning divide made so much worse by COVID-19.

Helping all children to access online learning

Join us to give the poorest children access to the devices that they really need to learn and support teachers to provide the best education possible in an evermore digital classroom.

Giving our schools a voice and access to powerful networks

To make a real difference to education across the country, we advocate for policy changes on behalf of schools serving the most disadvantaged communities. You can help us reach more people and influence real systemic change. What’s more, you could help us to connect more and more teachers through our networks because tackling educational inequality has to be a team effort.