Intent statement

At Primet Primary, we believe that phonics is the foundation for successful reading and writing. Using the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised programme, we aim to ensure that every child becomes a confident, fluent reader. Our intent is to provide a systematic, synthetic phonics approach that builds secure knowledge of letter-sound correspondences and develops blending and segmenting skills. Through consistent, high-quality teaching and regular assessment, we strive to foster a love of reading and equip children with the skills they need to access the wider curriculum.

Implementation

Phonics is taught daily in Reception and Year 1 using the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised programme. Lessons follow a clear, systematic sequence, introducing new grapheme–phoneme correspondences (GPCs) while revisiting prior learning to secure understanding.

Children in Reception learn to read and spell words using Phase 2 and Phase 3 GPCs, as well as words containing adjacent consonants from Phase 4, with increasing accuracy and confidence.

In Year 1, pupils review Phases 3 and 4 before moving on to Phase 5, where they learn to read and spell a wider range of GPCs with fluency and accuracy. Decodable books matched to each child’s phonics stage are used to develop reading skills, and regular assessment ensures gaps are quickly addressed through targeted keep-up sessions. Staff receive ongoing training to maintain consistency and high-quality delivery across the school.

 

Keep-up and Catch-up Support

Daily Keep-up lessons ensure every child learns to read. Any child who needs extra practice receives targeted support from a fully trained adult. These sessions follow the same structure and routines as whole-class lessons but break learning into smaller, manageable steps with increased repetition, helping pupils secure understanding and build confidence.

For children in Year 2 or Year 3 who are not yet fluent readers or did not pass the Phonics Screening Check, daily interventions are timetabled to accelerate progress. Using Little Wandle assessments, we identify gaps and teach directly to these using Keep-up resources. For pupils in Years 3 to 6 with remaining gaps, short, focused catch-up sessions (around 10 minutes) take place at least three times a week to address specific reading or writing needs and ensure continued progress.