Our Trust set to receive almost 1 million pound funding to boost maths progress
Co-op Academies Trust is delighted to be granted £960,000 funding from the Maths Excellence Fund. The Fund exists to encourage more young people to attain and progress in maths, increasing numbers of students staying on the maths pathway to A-Level. It has a special focus on students from disadvantaged backgrounds, where a huge difference can be made to help unlock opportunities.
Following a multi-stage process, four programmes were selected from 53 applications, including the project proposed by us. We are using this funding to recruit maths graduates who’ll work across eight academies (from 2024-2026) to improve the quality of maths education. The programme will also include training for maths teachers, additional maths qualifications for students, and the expanded use of technology.
Jay Timotheus, Director of Mathematics for Co-op Academies Trust, said of the project:
“We are excited about working with the Maths Excellence Fund to further improve the maths attainment of disadvantaged pupils across our academies. It will make a brilliant impact on students and we’re excited to implement the project.”
Dr Chris Tomlinson, CEO of Co-op Academies Trust, said:
“This project will massively impact the way we develop our maths teaching and we’re thrilled to have been granted the funding out of 53 applications. We’re excited to recruit our new Graduate Maths Teachers and begin to see the impact of the programme over the next few years for our pupils.”
Ben Cartledge, Director at the Maths Excellence Fund, said:
“We look forward to evaluating the impact of Co-op Academies Trust’s dual approach of recruiting recent maths graduates to work with high potential students alongside increased training for their maths teachers. By working with expert partners, schools and teachers, like Co-op Academies Trust, the Fund aims to build a legacy of knowledge and best practice and both approaches have the potential to address the widespread shortage of maths teachers.”
About the Maths Excellence Fund
The Maths Excellence Fund exists to help more students join and stay on the maths excellence pathway. The Fund has been established to improve student attainment and progression in maths, increasing the number of students who are on track to succeed in A-level maths and beyond. It has a particular focus on high potential students from disadvantaged backgrounds, for whom studying maths can unlock significant opportunities.
The Fund is supporting programmes that will be led by schools, universities and charities. Each programme will be independently evaluated to better understand which activities might improve student attainment and progress in maths, and to replicate best practice models.
More information about the Maths Excellence Fund.