At Erdington Hall School in Birmingham a newly-appointed headteacher believes that the key to taking her school out of the OFSTED underachieving category is effective foundation stage literacy.
The school is fairly socially deprived, 50 per cent take free meals, 70 per cent have English as an additional language.
But far from battening down the hatches, the school decides to change its foundation stage approach, making play the central focus.
A foundation stage leader is appointed and we see her in her new nursery role. We also follow two new reception teachers with both literacy and PSHE activities.
The school uses performance data to track the children's weaknesses and the impact of the changes they are making.
We look at the school's phonics initiative and hear that the children are remembering sounds and letters more effectively with this approach.
The programme concludes with a re-inspection; will the changes have an impact on the school's categorization?
