Encouraging participation in Children’s University (CU) learning activities (beyond the normal school day) to improve aspirations and attainment of primary pupils

Randomised controlled trial investigating the effect of participation in Children's University extracurricular activities on Key Stage 2 maths and English attainment amongst primary pupils

Status

Active, not recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ISRCTN

Registry ID

ISRCTN94746973

Enrollment

3000

Registered

2022-12-07

Start date

2020-11-01

Completion date

Unknown

Last updated

2025-09-08

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Participation in Children's University validated extracurricular activities amongst primary pupils Other

Interventions

Measures taken to ensure the trial is performed ethically are detailed below. The evaluation will be conducted in accordance with NFER’s Code of Practice, available at https://www.nfer.ac.uk/media/412

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: School inclusion criteria: 1. Maintained state-funded primary schools 2. Schools located in one of these Children's University localities: Bexley, Devon & Cornwall, East London, Elevate (covering Sefton and Lancashire areas), Enrich, Essex & Suffolk, Peterborough, Rotherham, Wakefield, Westminster and Wolverhampton Pupil inclusion criteria: 1. Attendance at a school that meets the above criteria and has agreed to participate in the trial 2. Completing Year 5 during the 2021/2022 academic year

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria: School exclusion criteria: 1. Schools already offering Children's University 2. Schools that have offered Children's University in the three years prior to the recruitment period

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
The following will be measured after approximately five school terms of participation in the intervention: 1. Maths attainment measured using KS2 maths scaled score, 0-999 continuous scale, obtained from National Pupil Database 2. Reading attainment measured using KS2 reading scaled score, 0-999 continuous scale, obtained from National Pupil Database	—

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
The following will be measured after approximately five school terms of participation in the intervention: 1. Engagement, measured using the Engagement subscale from the Panorama Social-Emotional Learning survey (as part of a bespoke survey developed by the evaluator) 2. Valuing of school, measured using the Valuing of school subscale from the Panorama Social-Emotional Learning survey (as part of a bespoke survey developed by the evaluator)	—

Measure

Time frame

The following will be measured after approximately five school terms of participation in the intervention: 1. Engagement, measured using the Engagement subscale from the Panorama Social-Emotional Learning survey (as part of a bespoke survey developed by the evaluator) 2. Valuing of school, measured using the Valuing of school subscale from the Panorama Social-Emotional Learning survey (as part of a bespoke survey developed by the evaluator)

—

Countries

England, United Kingdom

Contacts

Public ContactPalak Roy

p.mehta@nfer.ac.ukNone provided

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ISRCTN (via WHO ICTRP) · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026