Published: 15th April, 2026
Using Alps to Tackle Disadvantage: A Year-Long Case Study from Little Heath School
Written by: Josh Coulson, Deputy Headteacher, Little Heath School
Little Heath School is an 11–18 comprehensive school located on the western edge of Tilehurst, Reading and is part of the West Berkshire local authority. At Little Heath, the school ethos is that ‘Every Child Matters’, and that all students are entitled to a high-quality education.
This case study outlines how Little Heath School used Alps as the core data and monitoring platform across the entirety of the 2024-25 academic year to identify, support and improve outcomes for their most disadvantaged and disaffected students.
By embedding Alps at every stage of the cycle – from baseline analysis at the end of Year 10, through regular monitoring points to post-results evaluation – the school was able to make informed, timely interventions for the 66 ‘hardest-to-shift’ students in Year 11.
What follows is Little Heath School’s account of how sustained, structured use of Alps data underpinned a whole-year strategy to tackle disadvantage, improve attainment and strengthen post-16 pathways.
