Thousands of schools to benefit from covid early years support Early years catch up programme delivered to over a third of primary schools, exceeding targets From: 16 December 2020 Over 6,500 schools have signed up for a programme to boost early language skills among Reception age children, with training provided for more than 22,000 staff. The multi-million pound ‘catch up’ programme is set to raise outcomes in speaking and language skills for young pupils whose communication may have suffered as a result of missed time in education during the pandemic. Interest in the Nuffield Early Language Intervention (NELI) has exceeded its initial targets of having one quarter of primary schools in England involved, with 33% already successfully registered. The programme now aims to reach around 40% of primary schools this academic year, backed by a £9 million investment. It is targeted at those pupils who need help most, with schools allocated places in priority order based on the proportion of disadvantaged pupils eligible for Free School Meals.