What we do
Since 1995, Quest for Learning has been helping to close the gap in English and maths between Oxfordshire’s most disadvantaged primary-age children and their better-off peers.
We believe that too many children are not fulfilling their academic potential through no fault of their own. The reasons for this are not easy to unpick: it may be because they arrived at school with only limited English, they don’t have much support at home, or they miss vital teaching through illness, mental health or family circumstance. When children fall behind, confidence in lessons declines and so too does engagement. It can be all too difficult for schools to support these needs with their own resources, despite need being identified.
Whatever the reasons, two things are clear. Firstly, if these children don’t catch up with their peers by the time they leave primary school, their chances of doing so at secondary school are almost non-existent. Secondly, Quest for Learning, through our carefully designed interventions and resources, can make a real and lasting difference.
Please read our impact report to find out what that lasting difference looks like.
“Too many children have their futures shaped by disadvantage and circumstances beyond their control. We don’t believe that should define what’s possible. By giving children the literacy, numeracy and confidence to succeed, we’re helping them unlock their potential and building a future where opportunity is determined by ability, not background.”
Chris Higgins, Chief Executive
How we do it
We use trained, paid, and experienced tutors to deliver programmes in Oxfordshire primary schools. Some schools approach us for help themselves, while others are identified by Quest for Learning and our funders as needing extra support for some pupils. We have many long-term relationships with schools across the county and are always very happy to hear from new schools who’d be interested in working with us. Last year, we worked in over 25 schools.
Our programmes
ReadingQuest is designed to help early readers, who don’t have the key skills and strategies needed for successful reading.
BookQuest is designed to help KS2 pupils who have basic reading accuracy but low levels of comprehension.
Exciting banks of resources for use with small groups of children to help them improve their mental maths and calculation skills
Training courses
In addition to our teaching programmes, we also run a comprehensive programme of affordable, up-to-date, and inspiring CPD refresher courses for primary teachers and TAs, including workshops on KS1 and KS2 moderation and assessment.
Beyond Oxfordshire
We are a member of the Fair Education Alliance, an organisation that believes that no child’s success should be determined by their socioeconomic background. With over 250 member organisations, the FEA allows us to amplify our voice beyond Oxfordshire, and to take part in a national debate about how to tackle education disadvantage for all children.
Chris Higgins
Position - Chief Executive
As Chief Executive, Chris leads the charity's strategic direction, organisational development and day-to-day management. His career spans senior leadership roles across the charity, healthcare, education and creative sectors, including marketing and communications leadership and serving as Chief Operating Officer for one of the world's largest ambient music record labels. Chris is also the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead.
Heather Richards
Position - Education and Programme Manager
As Education and Programme Manager, Heather is responsible for the programme delivery, ensuring it is having the most impact possible on those children who need it most in schools. Heather is also the Designated Safeguarding Lead.
Emma Deasy
Position - Lead Tutor and Teaching & Learning Coordinator
Emma graduated from Exeter University with a degree in Primary Education and started her career teaching in Key Stage Two.
Jeanette Sadler
Position - Administrator
Jeanette has worked in a number of administration roles across the education and child support sector.
Claire Bishop
Position - Tutor
Claire has always enjoyed maths puzzles and playing games so being a NumSkills Tutor is her perfect job.
Ben Brice LLB LPC
Position - Legal Advisor
Ben is a Legal Director at Wedlake Bell, where he heads up the firm's charities team.
Roger Copleston ACMA CGMA MBA
Position - Chair of Trustees
Roger is a Senior Management Consultant with over 20 years experience working with global Fortune 500 organisations.
Hannah d’Angelo
Position - Tutor
Hannah has been teaching in the primary sector for over 10 years and is passionate about supporting children with Literacy difficulties.
Liz Gamlin
Position - Tutor
Liz has taught in a range educational settings including special schools, pupil referral units and higher education.
Tony Hobbs
Position - Financial Advisor
Tony is an accountant with experience in many sectors, having qualified in 1992.
Catherine Machin
Position - Tutor
Catherine completed a PGCE at Westminster College (now Oxford Brookes) and has taught across the primary age range in Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Outer London.
Samantha Mather
Position - Tutor
Samantha has been a class teacher in Oxfordshire since 1994, working mainly in KS2.
Alice McNeile
Position - Tutor
Alice completed a PGCE with language specialism at the University of East Anglia, she has taught in both primary and secondary schools ...
Saskia McQuitty
Position - Tutor
Saskia has worked in the field of education for more than 20 years and has gained wide experience in a number of countries.
Andrew Moore
Position - Tutor
Since completing his teacher training at Westminster College (now Oxford Brookes University) Andrew has been a class teacher in Oxfordshire from 1987 until 2010
Rumbi Mutopo
Position - Trustee
Rumbidzai Mutopo is an experienced HR professional, author and Founder of Harvest Family Finance. With a career dedicated to developing people and building inclusive organisations, she is passionate about creating opportunities for children and families to thrive.
Jen Pawsey
Position - Tutor
Jen trained at Homerton College, Cambridge and taught in Suffolk in the middle school system before returning to Oxfordshire. Since ...
Cherida Plumb
Position - Trustee
Cherida is an experienced fundraising professional with more than 20 years' experience in the charity sector, supporting organisations to grow sustainable income, build strong partnerships, and maximise their impact.
Kimberley Rose MCIPD
Position - Vice Chair of Trustees
Kimberley is an experienced HR professional with over 15 years’ experience across a range of roles, industries and countries.
Sarah Stewart
Position - Tutor
After 20 years teaching in Key Stage One and Reception, Sarah has a lot of experience in making learning engaging, practical and fun ...
James Veness BA (Hons) NPQH
Position - Trustee
James is Headteacher at a large primary school in Oxfordshire and has over 15 years of educational experience.
Hannah Waugh MSc
Position - Trustee
Hannah has a career working in children’s charities as a practitioner and fundraiser.
Ned Wells
Position - Trustee
Ned is a marketing consultant with over 20 years' experience working for businesses and charities across the UK and Europe.
Our vision
A future in which children from all backgrounds can succeed equally in education and in life.
Our mission
To work collaboratively to close the disadvantage gap in children’s literacy and numeracy skills.
Our values
We are:
Child-centred We recognise each child’s individual abilities and needs, keeping them at the heart of what we do
Empowering We support our beneficiaries to increase skills, improve their self-concept, and take ownership of their learning
Evidence-led We continually review our impact and adapt our processes in line with emerging evidence
Co-operative We value the expertise of schools and other charities, and actively seek opportunities for collaboration
Our goals
We intend to:
Address the disadvantage gap in educational attainment through our charitable activities
Be widely recognised as a trusted partner by schools
Be widely recognised as an expert voice by educational policy makers and other key stakeholders
Drive third-sector collaboration in the field of educational disadvantage
Support us
Our work in helping some of Oxfordshire’s most disadvantaged primary pupils is more vital than ever, but we are funded almost entirely by donations. All donations, no matter how big or small, will help us in our quest to improve the life chances of thousands of children.
At Quest for Learning we firmly believe that education expands our horizons, fires our imagination, and gives us pleasure and opportunity in life. But not all children flourish at school and unfortunately our programmes remain as relevant, in demand and impactful as they did 27 years ago when we were founded.
