Lift Schools and University College London (UCL) will publish their first major report into how school culture directly impacts pupil sense of belonging, attendance, and academic success.
The release, due in December, marks the first stage in a three-year, £225,000 Nuffield Foundation-backed research collaboration between Lift and UCL’s Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities (CEPEO).
The project, titled School Climate and Pupil Belonging, Attendance and Achievement, analyses Lift’s unique dataset to investigate causal links between school culture, belonging, attendance and outcomes.
The upcoming report will be exceptionally thorough, drawing on real-world data from over 26,000 students across 45 schools. Early findings show clear connections between school climate and student outcomes, offering educators practical insights to turn climate data into real school improvements.
Bobbie Mills, Head of Research at Lift, said: "This research will significantly strengthen the national evidence base, positioning school climate as a potential key driver and predictor of school improvement.
"We hope it will ultimately enable more schools to implement practices that boost belonging, attendance, and attainment for their students."
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This research builds on our Culture and Climate survey - adapted from the Chicago 5 Essentials survey - which tracks and measures student and teacher experiences.
Watch: What is the Culture & Climate survey
For students, climate includes:
For teachers, it’s about
Key aims of the research:
In tandem with the UCL study, Lift has also partnered with the Reach Foundation to launch KS3 Futures - an initiative targeted at tackling widespread Key Stage 3 (Years 7–9) student disengagement.
Alongside this, Becks Boomer-Clark, CEO of Lift, is co-chair of the KS3 Alliance, a DfE-backed initiative aimed at transforming the early years of secondary education.
Find out more about the work Lift is doing on KS3 engagement and read the KS3 Cliff Edge report.
Acknowledgement
This project has been funded by the Nuffield Foundation, but the views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily the Foundation.
