How did EdPlace respond to the pandemic in 2020 and what has changed?

Since the closure of UK schools in March 2020, for a period of almost six months in most cases, it has become very clear that the Covid-19 pandemic will have a significant and long-lasting effect on the education sector in the UK and all the students who have had their learning disrupted. 

In their report released on schools closures in June 2020, the Education Endowment Foundation detailed three key findings:

1) School closures are likely to reverse progress made to narrow the 'attainment gap' in the last decade (i.e. the gap between those students who are advantaged and those who are disadvantaged); 

2) Supporting effective remote learning will be important to reduce further negative effects after school closures;

3) Sustained support will be needed to help some students catch up on missed learning. 

(Best evidence on impact of school closures on the attainment gap | Education Endowment Foundation | EEF) 

At EdPlace, we recognise that this has been, and will continue to be moving forwards, an exceptionally challenging time for some students, teachers and families; and we are committed to doing what we can to help all those who will benefit from access to our resources. 

How did EdPlace respond? 

• We created and launched a free, limited version of our parent and student accounts so that anyone can access EdPlace resources on some level (to find out more about the difference between our free and paid accounts, please click here);
• We unlocked access to all our activities on our website so that every single one could be accessed without the need for any type of account;
• We supported schools and community provisions with access to free accounts for up to 100 students; 
• Our teacher-authors created and delivered throughout the school closure period, weekly video lessons for all year groups and subjects, which were sent out to all free and paying customers via email. These video lessons can also be accessed by clicking here.   

What does the future hold for the EdPlace community? 

We believe that the effects of school closures are only just beginning to be felt, and the challenges of local lockdowns will continue for some time yet. Therefore, we are making a lasting pledge to support UK families who need our help in the following ways:

• Continuing to offer a limited, free parent account indefinitely which any parent can sign up to use;
• Creating a new, free teacher account with access for up to 30 free student accounts (during school hours);
• Providing each teacher with 5 unlimited free access accounts to gift to their students who would benefit from accessing EdPlace at home;
• Launching catch-up assessments to help identify areas which need support for students on an individual basis, so that they can target their learning on EdPlace, with the support of their parents, to 'catch up' (click here for more information on these); 
• Working as a partner with the National Tutoring Programme, supported by the UK government and delivered by organisations approved by the Education Endowment Foundation, to help the most disadvantaged students in the UK to get back on track with their learning (click here for more information on this project). 

We will continue to add to and update this page as the situation inevitably progresses and evolves. If you have any questions or concerns about your child's learning and how EdPlace is supporting your family during these trying times, please contact our friendly Customer Support Team via email at help@edplace.com.

Here is a copy of the email which was sent to all EdPlace users, past and present, on 24th March 2020: