The Curriculum and Assessment Review (2025)
The Curriculum and Assessment Review (2025) highlights the need for early identification, inclusion, and stronger foundations for reading and language. Aligning with these recommendations ensures that schools adopting Speedie Readies are ready to meet future policy expectations and demonstrate evidence-based practice.
Speedie Readies aligns with key recommendations from the Curriculum and Assessment Review (2025) offering a solution that requires little expense or change, and that could yield high gains.
Reflecting on the 2025 Curriculum and Assessment Review
The Curriculum and Assessment Review: Building a World-Class Curriculum for All (DfE, 2025) presents a vision for curriculum coherence, inclusion, and early literacy. It rightly highlights oracy, communication, and accessibility, including the importance of AAC for non-speaking children, and it calls for improvement in literacy outcomes. However, it stops short of connecting the essential elements that underpin early reading success: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, comprehension, and vocabulary knowledge.
While the report references the Phonics Screening Check (PSC) and reading attainment at Key Stage 2, it does not acknowledge what decades of research have already shown, that passing the PSC does not correlate with improved reading comprehension in KS2 (Bradbury, 2019; Wyse & Bradbury, 2022). The PSC measures decoding, not understanding, and yet it remains the main measure of early reading success in England.
This narrow focus is disappointing. True early reading development is not linear or mechanical. It is rooted in rich language experiences, sound–print mapping, and exposure to meaningful text. I remember teaching Reception using The Village with Three Corners, and only one or two children in each class failed to become avid, fluent readers by the time they entered Year 1. That was because we connected speech, print, and meaning every day.
What this report misses is the connection between phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, comprehension, and vocabulary. These are the five pillars that every government review acknowledges as essential. The system continues to privilege phonics alone, shaped by the Simple View of Reading and the assumption that decoding automatically leads to fluency and comprehension. We now have longitudinal evidence that it does not.
The Speedie Readies Response
The Speedie Readies system responds directly to this gap. It enables a Teaching Assistant to screen for risk and provide individualised ten-minute daily sessions, Ten Minutes a Day, With a TA, from as early as Term 2 in Reception. These one-to-one sessions continue as long as needed, preventing the onset of reading failure before it begins.
This is how we address the dyslexia paradox, the well-documented phenomenon where we can identify the risk of dyslexia early but typically intervene only after children have already failed to learn to read. The Speedie Readies system ensures that no child reaches that point. It prevents rather than reacts, supporting every learner to reach the self-teaching phase before the end of Year 1.
Alignment with the 2025 Review
Although still a work in progress, these notes highlight how Speedie Readies achieves many of the Review’s stated aims for inclusion, oracy, and mastery.
Inclusion and Equity
“As set out in the Terms of Reference, the Review has a commitment to ‘Remediate existing blocks to progress and good outcomes, with an especial concern for equity and ensuring positive outcomes for children and young people who are from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds, have a special education need (SEN) or disability and/or are otherwise vulnerable’. We have applied a social justice lens to all aspects of our work, seeking to identify and remove barriers to progress within the curriculum and assessment system.” (p. 28)
This aligns directly with the principles behind Speedie Readies, which is designed by Level 7 SEN and Speech and Language Therapy specialists to ensure that the learning needs of individual children are met from the very beginning of school. The system enables measurable progress through both qualitative and quantitative data collection, creating the evidence base needed for submission to the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF).
“Therefore, as well as providing principles to support the refreshed drafting of the national curriculum, we make recommendations to foreground the role of wider guidance and exemplification to support practitioners, across all settings, to adapt the national curriculum where required.” (p. 30)
Speedie Readies exemplifies this recommendation in practice. It offers teachers and Teaching Assistants clear exemplification for how to deliver adapted and differentiated support within Reception and Year 1. The Ten Minutes a Day, With a TA model allows schools to implement upstream screening and targeted support without replacing existing phonics instruction. This flexible, inclusive model ensures that every child can access learning at their own pace and enter the self-teaching phase early, before reading failure occurs.
Oracy and Communication
“The Review considers oracy to incorporate speaking, listening, and communication, including verbal as well as other forms of non-written communication, such as sign language, non-verbal and Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC).”
“The evidence for the benefits of oracy for young people’s learning and life chances is well established... Our review of the evidence has highlighted the need for further support and guidance for oracy and spoken language interventions.” (pp. 41–43)
Speedie Readies directly responds to this gap. It integrates oracy and literacy development through MySpeekie®, an Innovate UK–funded One Screen AAC system designed for non-speaking children who cannot yet read or spell. MySpeekie® allows all children to participate in speech–sound mapping, building understanding of how speech and print connect. This ensures that non-speaking children are included in the development of phonological processing, decoding, and spelling.
Using The Village with Three Corners series, children engage in dialogue about stories and characters, strengthening expressive and receptive language. This approach also reflects the Review’s call for renewed emphasis on oracy within the English curriculum:
“The recommendations for oracy in the English chapter emphasise the need for the English curriculum to make speaking and listening requirements more prominent, including through giving greater prominence to Drama.” (pp. 42–43)
Building Secure Foundations
“The primary context offers opportunities for breadth and for meaningful connections to be drawn across subjects... Through our recommendations, we aim to secure strong foundations in numeracy and literacy, ensuring all pupils complete Key Stage 2 with fluency in reading, writing and number.” (p. 44)
In Speedie Readies, these developmental connections are realised through a sequence that integrates speech, sound, and print with meaning. By showing the code within real stories, children build both decoding skills and comprehension. The first 52 Village with Three Corners books are orthographically mapped, showing how letters and sounds connect within words, enabling children to see and understand the structure of English words from the outset.
Knowledge and Mastery
“The refreshed national curriculum should maintain a knowledge-rich approach. This emphasises the building of a deep understanding of subject matter and concepts via carefully sequenced teaching, supporting retention and fluency.” (p. 47)
Speedie Readies provides that carefully sequenced structure, ensuring mastery through deliberate repetition and reinforcement within context. The app and books together deliver a depth of practice that promotes both fluency and comprehension.
“Mastery of core concepts is necessary for children and young people to develop a deep understanding... The curriculum should ensure that children and young people have sufficient space to secure, deepen and extend their foundational knowledge and skills, building on prior learning.” (p. 48)
This is at the core of Speedie Readies, which enables mastery through one-to-one, self-paced learning. The Ten Minutes a Day, With a TA sessions ensure children can revisit and consolidate knowledge without stigma, while technology ensures that no word is ever “out of reach.”
Teacher Autonomy and Adaptation
“It is important that teachers and leaders have space to exercise their professional judgement and innovate... Teachers act as ‘curriculum makers’, interpreting and transforming the content in the national curriculum to ‘author’ instructional events with students in the classroom.” (p. 50)
The Speedie Readies Teacher Handbook supports this autonomy by helping teachers and TAs tailor one-to-one instruction to each learner’s profile, while still aligning with the national curriculum’s aims. Teachers can integrate the system flexibly, using it to reinforce early writing and word mapping, or to provide small-group or individual interventions without extensive training or preparation.
Assessment and Inclusion
“Some pupils cannot undertake the PSC, as the format requires them to decode aloud to the listening adult conducting the check... We recommend that the DfE and the Standards and Testing Agency (STA) explore ways that schools can assess non- and pre-verbal pupils’ decoding and ensure greater scrutiny of their progress at this critical stage.” (p. 128)
Speedie Readies is uniquely positioned to meet this recommendation. Its integrated AAC technology allows schools to assess decoding and speech–sound mapping in non-speaking children, ensuring equitable participation in early literacy assessment. Trials in schools will provide data and models for alternative PSC arrangements that meet this goal.
Moving Forward
“We recommend that the Government introduces an oracy framework to support practice and to complement the existing frameworks for Reading and Writing. The refreshed national curriculum should ensure the professional autonomy of teachers is maintained.” (p. 180)
Speedie Readies already represents this integration in practice. It combines oracy, literacy, inclusion, and mastery into one cohesive model that enables schools to act on the principles of the Review immediately, rather than waiting for further frameworks.
We already build assessment tools for non-speaking children, for example to check grapheme recognition and blending skills (extending the PSC), to identify whether they understand how letters and sounds connect within ‘sight words’, and to assess their comprehension of the text they are reading.
The Speech Sound Pics (SSP) reception teachers we support start with the Speech Sound Play plan before introducing graphemes, and track every child as a preventative approach. This was a support group, where we were showing Reception teachers how we identify our 'red alerts' from week 1, and ensure that phonemic awareness and phonolocial awareness issues are overcome before the end of term 1. The 'Monster Routine' is a spelling routine - as seen here
We can show TAs how to track phonemic awareness in England.
The specific sections of the report referred to above are as follows:
"As set out in the Terms of Reference, the Review has a commitment to ‘Remediate existing blocks to progress and good outcomes, with an especial concern for equity and ensuring positive outcomes for children and young people who are from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds, have a special education need (SEN) or disability and/or are otherwise vulnerable’. We have applied a social justice lens to all aspects of our work, seeking to identify and remove barriers to progress within the curriculum and assessment system. In doing this we recognise that young people from both socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds and those with SEND are not generalised groups. They contain individuals with a wide range of prior attainment and characteristics, strengths, interests, barriers to learning, and needs regarding the curriculum." p28
"Therefore, as well as providing principles to support the refreshed drafting of the national curriculum, we make recommendations to foreground the role of wider guidance and exemplification to support practitioners, across all settings, to adapt the national curriculum where required (see the national curriculum as a tool for teachers) p30
The Review considers oracy to incorporate speaking, listening, and communication, including verbal as well as other forms of non-written communication, such as sign language, non-verbal and Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC). The evidence for the benefits of oracy for young people’s learning and life chances is well established. According to the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF), oracy interventions lead to significant improvements in student outcomes. Oracy is also important for future study, life and work. Evidence suggests that oracy can support active learning, critical thinking, and enhance students’ engagement and understanding. In addition, the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) lists communication skills and English language skills in the top 20 skills (out of 161) in both current demand for these skills and the expected future increased demand. Strong verbal communication also has clear benefits throughout life. For example, it improves workplace cohesion and productivity, and it has important benefits for psychological and physical health in later life. Our review of the evidence has highlighted the need for further support and guidance for oracy and spoken language interventions. In 2024, over a fifth of children did not meet the expected standards in all the early learning goals in communication and language in their Early Years Foundation Stage profile, while those eligible for free school meals (FSM) and those with SEN were less likely than their peers to meet the same standards.
In summary, the evidence suggests that the current emphasis on spoken language in the curriculum aims is not always reflected in classroom practice, nor is it meeting the needs of all children and young people. The Review has considered how oracy might be strengthened in specific subjects within the curriculum. The recommendations for oracy in the English chapter emphasise the need for the English curriculum to make speaking and listening requirements more prominent, including through giving greater prominence to Drama (see English). p42,43
"The primary context offers opportunities for breadth and for meaningful connections to be drawn across subjects. These connections should be developmentally appropriate and pedagogically rich, helping pupils to build secure foundations for future learning. This approach is not in contrast with the disciplinary integrity of individual subjects but reflects the distinctive potential of the primary phase. A well-designed curriculum in Key Stages 1 and 2 can nurture curiosity, support mastery and foster a love of learning whilst ensuring that pupils are well prepared for Key Stage 3. Throughout the Review, primary practitioners and subject experts have consistently highlighted that, whilst the curriculum at Key Stages 1 and 2 is broad in its scope, this can come at the expense of depth. The volume of content in many subjects makes it challenging to explore topics in sufficient detail, affecting pupils’ ability to master key concepts. Conversely, many of the foundation subjects in the national curriculum lack detail, which means that teachers are unclear about what is sufficient in terms of depth or breadth. This lack of clarity also leads to inconsistent coverage of content across schools, making it more challenging to ensure knowledge is built coherently and sequentially across the key stages. Through our recommendations, we aim to secure strong foundations in numeracy and literacy, ensuring all pupils complete Key Stage 2 with fluency in reading, writing and number" p44
"The refreshed national curriculum should maintain a knowledge-rich approach. This emphasises the building of a deep understanding of subject matter and concepts via carefully sequenced teaching, supporting retention and fluency. This approach also ensures that all children and young people, regardless of background, have access to a broad and rich foundational body of knowledge, thereby reducing inequalities. A curriculum centred on ‘powerful knowledge’ provides a shared frame of reference for children and young people from different backgrounds, enabling them to engage more effectively with issues affecting them and the world around them." p47
"Mastery of core concepts is necessary for children and young people to develop a deep understanding of subject disciplines. Knowledge is cumulative and, with a strong knowledge base (and deliberate revisiting of prior knowledge), they can build new knowledge in their long-term memory more easily. An absence of this can inhibit them from securing the necessary depth of knowledge to make progress in their learning, particularly for some with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). We are not advocating unnecessary repetition, which can reduce engagement. Rather, the curriculum should ensure that children and young people have sufficient space to secure, deepen and extend their foundational knowledge and skills, building on prior learning." p48
Professional autonomy
The national curriculum is only one part of a school’s overall curriculum, and it is important that teachers and leaders have space to exercise their professional judgement and innovate. Professional autonomy allows teachers, schools and multi-academy trusts to be creative, innovative and ensure that they can meet children and young people’s needs through a locally relevant curriculum. As we stated in our conceptual position paper, a rich and well-specified national curriculum supports and empowers teachers’ professional practice. Teachers act as ‘curriculum makers’, interpreting and transforming the content in the national curriculum to ‘author’ instructional events with students in the classroom. At the core of curriculummaking is the process of unpacking and interpreting content to unlock its educational potential. The Review supports the innovation and professionalism of teachers, enabling them to adapt how they teach the curriculum to reflect their students’ lives and experiences. The national curriculum is intended as a baseline rather than imposing limits, and it is the expertise of our teachers that brings it to life in the classroom. Ensuring the profession has the space to develop the curriculum is essential to enable the stretch and/or support learners need, enabling inclusive and adaptive teaching to happen for individual children and young people. This is particularly important in the context of greater numbers of them being identified as having SEND. To that end, the national curriculum should be teachable within the time available and should not be so specific that it restricts teachers’ autonomy (see the national curriculum as a tool for teachers). p50
"Ofsted also found that spoken language is not always well understood or taught effectively. We therefore recommend that, throughout the English curriculum, requirements for speaking and listening are given greater clarity and the curricular aims and outcomes are better specified. This should be supported by the creation of an oracy framework to give further guidance (see oracy)." p75
"It is essential that knowledge gaps in reading, writing, grammar, punctuation and spelling are diagnosed as early as possible. We encourage all schools to use the non-statutory Key Stage 1 tests to provide greater insights for Key Stage 2 teachers" p76
"At Key Stage 1, the Phonics Screening Check (PSC) focuses on assessing pupils’ phonic knowledge and skill, and the extent to which they can apply these successfully to decode phonics. The effectiveness of phonics is well evidenced, 370 and, given the importance of children’s security in reading for their educational progress, we consider it important that the check remains. Some pupils cannot undertake the PSC, as the format requires them to decode aloud to the listening adult conducting the check. This means that there is no consistent way to assess pre- and non-verbal pupils on their decoding and where they need further support. Given the importance of a strong grounding in phonics, we recommend that the DfE and the Standards and Testing Agency (STA) explore ways that schools can assess non- and pre-verbal pupils’ decoding and ensure greater scrutiny of their progress at this critical stage. We recommend that any alternative arrangements are administered in the school setting, and (as now) not included in published accountability measures. This will help to maintain the integrity of the PSC and ensure pupils who can undertake it continue to do so, while also making sure that those who cannot are still checked. " p128
"We recommend that the Government introduces an oracy framework to support practice and to complement the existing frameworks for Reading and Writing. and that
The refreshed national curriculum should ensure the professional autonomy of teachers is maintained, making sure that greater specificity does not substantially restrict teachers’ flexibility to choose lesson content and how to teach it." p180
"Ensures that the STA works with the DfE to find ways to encourage take-up of optional Key Stage 1 assessments." p195