EEF Trial: GCSE Resit Tuition Programme

What are the aims of the trial? 

Get Further exists to support students in further education from disadvantaged backgrounds to secure gateway English and maths qualifications that unlock opportunities. We are undertaking an independent evaluation (which includes a randomised controlled trial, ‘RCT’) of our tuition programme in the academic year 2025/26 in order to better understand: 

• The impact of the Get Further tutoring programme on GCSE resit results.  
• The impact of the tutoring programme on students’ motivation and confidence. 
• The processes involved in the implementation of the programme and how/why any impact has been achieved. 

This is an important opportunity to learn more about the impact of small group tutoring in a context where the evidence base is less clear (post-16 settings), and to better understand the practices and principles which may contribute to its effectiveness for GCSE resit learners. 

Who are the EEF and the evaluation team? 

The Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) is an independent charity dedicated to breaking the link between family income and educational achievement. The EEF is committed to funding this evaluation of the Get Further Resit Tutoring Programme in order to advance understanding of what works to support post-16 learners.   

Co-leading the evaluation team are Dr. Rebecca Morris and Dr. Tom Perry, both Associate Professors from the University of Warwick. Their Research Fellow, Dr. Katie Crompton is responsible for the day-today running of the project, with the help of Dr. Paul Thompson, a statistician from the University of Birmingham and Dr. Ellie Willard, a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Leeds Beckett University. 

What is a randomised controlled trial (RCT)?  

A randomised controlled trial is a type of scientific experiment used to test how effective a particular intervention is. RCTs are commonly used in medical research (e.g., trialling new drug treatments) but are now being more widely used in education and social research too. Their key characteristic is that students are randomly allocated into two groups: some to an ‘intervention’ group (those who receive the intervention) and some to a ‘control’ group (those who do not receive the intervention).    

Random allocation means that all students in the trial have the same chance to receive the intervention. This reduces bias and ensures that known and unknown characteristics which might affect the outcome of the trial are evenly distributed between groups. By having a control group against which a comparison can be made, any differences in the outcomes between the two groups can be attributed to the intervention. 

How will the evaluation work? 

Colleges will be invited to take part in the evaluation for the academic year 2025/26. The evaluation team is aiming for 41 settings, with roughly 100 consenting students taking part in the tuition programme and 100 taking part in the control group at each setting. 

At the start of the 2025-26 academic year, participating colleges will be asked to share a full list of all GCSE resit students, from which half will be randomised to receive the tuition programme and half will be randomised to the control group.  

Students in both groups will periodically complete surveys and other research materials. At the end of the year, following the GCSE resit exam, the evaluation team will use the participating student exam data to analyse the impact of the programme. 

How can I get involved? 

If you decide you would like to take part in the trial, Get Further would require an initial confirmation, ASAP, to confirm your place. Alongside this, it would be helpful to know approximately how many students you would like to offer the tutoring to. Following this, a formal contract, in the form of a Memorandum of Understanding will be sent out for you to sign by no later than 31st May 2025. 

Places for participation in the trial are available on a ‘first come, first served’ basis. Once we have recruited sufficient students and college settings to meet the required sample size for the trial we will no longer be offering subsidised programmes. 

To take part, please click fill out the form at the bottom of this page.

How much will it cost to take part? 

The EEF is part funding the evaluation. This means colleges will be asked to contribute just 16% of the delivery cost, to take part in the evaluation. The actual amount payable, by college, will vary based on student numbers. This is a significant reduction on the main cost of delivery and is a good opportunity for colleges to offer high-quality tuition at a substantially subsidised rate.

Why should I get involved? 

This programme seeks to address the persistent challenge of low pass and progress rates among GCSE English and maths resit students, which has a significant impact on their future educational and employment opportunities. This evaluation will make an important contribution to the evidence base on how we can best support post-16 students to succeed in English and maths. 

The findings will contribute to helping FE providers and charities like Get Further to design and deliver interventions which best support students. They may also form part of a larger campaign to persuade policy and government officials to make changes that benefit college students. Get Further is ambitious about using research and evidence to unlock greater funding and support for the FE sector so future students can benefit and have the resources needed to thrive. 

Who can take part? 

• Any FE or sixth form college offering GCSE maths/English resits; 
• Students resitting English or maths GCSE, in their first year of post-16 study, who are not entered in for a November 2025 resit; 
• Students who are not taking part in another GCSE resit tutoring trial. 

What does taking part involve? 

Colleges/settings will be required to: 

• Complete all trial documentation when needed (e.g Memorandum of Understanding, data sharing agreements and partnership agreements). 
• Share a full list of all GCSE resit students, with prior starting grades, demographic and other information. 
• Share information on the trial, and support the recruitment of students into the trial (to both the intervention and control groups).
• Support the retention and engagement activities, of Get Further, directed to students in both the intervention and control groups.  
• Support the delivery of the tuition programme e.g. timetabling and room allocation.  
• Facilitate observations, by the evaluators, of two tuition sessions (in Nov 2025 and Mar 2026). 
• Engage in surveys and focus groups, as required by the evaluators.  

This work is designed with sensitivity and care, to minimise disruption to college staff and students. 

All participating students (i.e. receiving the programme and those allocated to the control group) will complete a short survey at the beginning and end of the programme (expected to be in September 2025 and May 2026).  Students who are assigned to the Get Further programme only, will be invited to complete an additional survey in July 2026, and to take part in a focus group – both are voluntary and students can opt out of these.   

Can my college/FE setting opt out of the trial? 

Yes, your college can opt out of the trial but please bear in mind the following consequences: 

• The college’s contribution, the 16% charged in advance, is not refundable.  
• Withdrawing from the trial affects the sample size and number of colleges (and students) taking part. Consequently, it impacts the reliability of the trial and may jeopardise the rest of the trial. 

To view Get Further’s Evaluation Privacy Notice, please click here.

What data will be collected? 

There are two strands to the data collection for this study:  

1. The RCT data, which compares the intervention group and control group outcomes to estimate the impact of the intervention. The primary measures of the impact of the tuition programme are students’ GCSE scores. The evaluators will collect original GCSE scores for maths or English in September 2025 from the national data (held by the Department for Education and examination boards). They will compare these scores to the resit scores at the end of the 25/26 academic year. The evaluators are also interested in some secondary measures including academic confidence and motivation, which they will measure using a reliable, validated questionnaire, administered at the start (Sep 2025) and again at the end (est. May 2026) of the trial. The survey will go to all students involved in the trial (both the ‘intervention’ and ‘control’ groups). The evaluators will also collect demographic data (e.g. age, gender, disadvantage identifiers) on the participating students.  
2. The Implementation and Process Evaluation (IPE) data, to better understand how the intervention works and its implementation. During the trial, the evaluators will collect data to enable them to evaluate the efficacy of the Get Further intervention using a range of methods including: observations of tutoring sessions; student surveys; student, staff and tutor interviews and focus groups. Care will be taken to minimise any burden of this on colleges and students, for example, by drawing on pre-existing and Get Further data and arranging site visits to be convenient around staff and student timetables. 

What will you do with the findings? 

The evaluators will use student data, like exam grade data and survey responses, to measure the impact of Get Further tuition on students taking part in the programme. The evaluators’ analysis and findings will be written up in an ‘evaluation report’ which will be published in the Spring of 2027. Some of this analysis and findings may be used by Get Further, in publications such as blog posts, social media posts and other materials.  

All data will be anonymised before analysis.  In the case where any names of students, staff or tutors, or any other identifiable information is given during interviews, this information will also be anonymised, and pseudonyms given, before it is shared for analysis. This means that you will not be named or identified in the research, reports, or other outputs. 

How will you use and protect my data? 

• Any information and data you share will be kept confidential and will be stored securely on the University of Warwick’s internal software system. 
• At the end of the trial, data will be submitted to the EEF for its data archive. However, no information will be archived that could be used to directly identify individual students. For further information, see the EEF’s archive privacy notice. 
• Get Further will only collect and process personal information to effectively evaluate the programme.  
• Student and college data will only be shared with the evaluation team and the EEF, for the purposes of this research and evaluation activity.  
• Please see our Evaluation Privacy Notice which contains more information on how we ensure data is collected safely, stored securely, and destroyed in a timely manner. 
• Please see the University of Warwick’s Privacy Notice for information on how they will store, process and use your data.  

What about the ethics of only offering tuition to a random, limited number of students? 

We recognise that the trial design, which relies on 4,050 students to take part in tuition and a further 4,050 in the control group, inevitably means some students will miss out on the chance for tuition. As a charity focused on improving outcomes for students, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, this makes us uneasy too.

However, we recognise the need for better research and evidence in FE and a trial of this nature will make a huge difference in this sector. It will contribute to the evidence base for tuition and provide insights into the best practices and processes for improving outcomes for students. We hope to be able to use the outcome of this trial to campaign for more funding for interventions, like tuition, but also for the FE sector as a whole. Further, for college partners who renew with us for 2026-27, the year after the trial, we are committed to offering places to students involved in the control group first. 

What will students be asked in the survey?  

The survey will also ask for some background information such as the college students are enrolled at, the course they are studying, previous exam results for GCSE maths and/or English. The survey will also ask students to consider statements relating to motivation and confidence. 

How long will the survey take?  

The survey is short and designed to take between 5 – 10 minutes. 

Who sees my survey responses?  

Your survey responses will go directly to the evaluators based at the University of Warwick. Please note, your individual survey responses will not be shared with your college, unless you share something which tells us you or someone else is at risk of serious harm, or being harmed. In which case, we may need to disclose this information with your college. A report which highlights key findings, will be produced by the evaluators, but at no point will you be named or identified in that report.  

How will you obtain my exam grade data?  

The evaluators will collect your original GCSE scores for maths or English in September 2025 from  national databases (held by the Department for Education and examination boards). They will compare these scores to the resit scores at the end of the 25/26 academic year, also obtained from national databases. 

How will my data be used? 

The evaluators will use the data it gathers from students and staff to analyse the feasibility, efficacy and effectiveness of the Get Further tutoring intervention. All data will be anonymised before analysis and will be stored securely on the University of Warwick’s internal  system.  The data will also be shared with the EEF for its data archive. However, no information will be archived that could be used to directly identify individual students. For further information, see the EEF’s archive privacy notice. 

Once analysis is complete, the findings will be shared with Get Further and the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF), who are funding the project. 

Will I be mentioned by name or identified in your work?  

No. All data and information will be anonymised. Meaning your name will be removed and personal identifying information will also be removed.  

What if I change my mind?  

You can, of course, change your mind at any time. If you would like to withdraw from the evaluation, and would prefer that your data is not used, please email: hello@getfurther.org.uk with the subject ‘Get Further/EEF trial’ 

Where can I find more information on the evaluators, the EEF and Get Further?  

More information about Get Further can be found on our website. More information on the EEF can be found here. More information about the evaluation team can be found here:  

• Dr Rebecca Morris.
• Dr Tom Perry.
• Dr Paul Thompson.
• Dr Ellie Willard.

Where can I find out more about the tuition offered by Get Further at my college?  

If you would like to know more about the tuition programme at your college, please speak to your Head of English/ maths, or explore our website.