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Launchpad for Literacy is all about children, the skills they have and the skills they need for all aspects of literacy. It is a systematic, skill-based approach, enabling you to:

  • improve outcomes in the Early Years and beyond by creating firm foundations and a broad base of readiness, addressing whole school attainment issues from the ‘bottom-up.’
  • identify and close specific skill gaps with individuals and vulnerable groups, assessing, tracking and quantifying the process of closing the gap.
  • identify speech, language and other developmental needs as soon as possible and to embed specific skill-based intervention into practice and ‘Quality First Teaching.’
  • have a greater level of diagnostic capability, establishing reasons and solutions to underpin informed interventions when literacy acquisition is problematic.
  • We have worked with Kirstie using her Launchpad for Literacy approach over the last few years. This has gone from strength to strength with the schools in Derby City who utilise this amazing resource. The number of Derby City children who have passed the screening check has increased year on year, last year with an average of 8% increase, plus 3 schools increasing by 24%. Kirstie is a very talented and knowledgeable professional who wants the very best for children and has a wealth of expertise within this field.
    - Laura Baddiley, Strategic Business Director, Harrington Nursery School, Derby
  • Launchpad for Literacy is instrumental in giving us a clear direction on how we can improve literacy skills and to support communication & language skills. Launchpad supports us to quickly identify literacy attainment gaps in both Early Years & KS1. It provides us with key 'tracking assessment' tools, ensuring children make accelerated progress from low starting points. This ensures attainment gaps are quickly closed for all groups of children, including those with additional needs. 

    Launchpad for Literacy will change your mindset and whole school approach to the teaching literacy and phonics. 
    - Diane Jeffries , Director of Early Years , WISE Academies
  • Launchpad for Literacy has supported teaching and learning greatly at St. Chads. It has enabled our middle learners to successfully segment and blend CVC words within the first term of teaching phase 2 phonics and supported them to move onto phase 3 much quicker. It has also supported our new to English children to pick up nouns and verbs quickly, extending their language and vocabulary.
    - Katie Gilsenan, EYFS Leader, St. Chad’s CofE Infant and Nursery School, Derby
  • Launchpad for Literacy has revolutionised Literacy interventions for lower attaining children across school. In particular, the impact of diagnostic testing, linked to the Launchpad’s skill strands and skill steps, has enabled teachers to deliver a progressive sequence of interventions. This has resulted in this group of children making accelerated progress over a term, significantly narrowing the gap in attainment when compared to their peers. It has also resulted in this group of children successfully acquiring and then applying their growing phonic knowledge.
    - Christine Robson, Deputy Head of Bexhill Academy / Director of Town End Teaching School Alliance, Sunderland
  • For years now, we have struggled with the less able children making progress in the RWI programme. However, I have used the Launchpad for Literacy Approach to identify skill gaps, enabling me to adapt RWI to include many of the pre-skills the children need in order to make progress within the programme and in order to succeed. We are thrilled with the results of the most recent RWI assessment as all of the children in the 'Word Time' group - the very beginning of the programme - have moved into the next band. This has never been known before!
    - Louise Sanderson, Assistant Head, EYFS and Read, Write Inc. Lead of Croftway Academy, Blyth, Northumberland
  • At both schools we have a large number of children who join us with communication and language skills needs and Launchpad has been the missing tool that now helps us to assess and teach specific skills so that children can catch up with their peers. Launchpad for Literacy has been the key to success and every teacher is now confident and uses Launchpad every day. The introduction of Launchpad has improved the progress and attainment for all children but especially those with significant gaps in their learning.
    - Deb Ward, Executive Headteacher of Croftway and Malvin’s Close Academies, Blyth, Northumberland

The Launchpad for Literacy Package provides materials and information to implement and embed the approach. This includes the following.

The A1 chart of the Launchpad for Literacy Skills Framework underpins the approach. Skill strands are broken down into systematic, incremental skill steps through which children need to progress in order to be ready for all aspects of literacy.

The Skills Handbooks cover theoretical and developmental information about each skill area, giving practical ideas and guidance for each skill step in order to implement and embed the approach.

The Customer Number and Password allows access to the log-in area of the website to access the Class Tracker, supporting documents and assessment information.

The Launchpad for Literacy Class Tracker enables skill progression to be tracked, supplying summative data across the skill strands, comparing progression between vulnerable groups. The process of closing the gaps, literacy readiness and speech and language support becomes measurable, also aiding the early identification of specific developmental needs.

Current Cost of Package: £295 (including P&P)
Price from 01/01/2024: £495

Training to support implementation of the Launchpad for Literacy Approach is available on request.
Please email kirstie.page@launchpadforliteracy.co.uk for more information.