Rethinking working memory: Minet Junior School’s story

Minet Junior School in West London faces rising SEND needs, high mobility and increasingly complex learning profiles. Holly Elderfield, Assistant Headteacher for Inclusion (SENDCo) explains below how the school introduced Recall to gain clearer insight into how working memory was affecting their pupils’ progress.

Minet Junior School is a large four form entry junior school in Hayes, West London. Our school sits right next to Heathrow Airport, and our community reflects the diversity and transience of the area. Around 89% of our children speak English as an additional language, nearly half are eligible for Pupil Premium and we’ve seen a significant rise in asylum seeking and refugee families joining us. We’re also a high turnover school, with children frequently moving in and out.

Our SEND needs have been steadily rising, too. Around 20% of our pupils are on the SEND register (above the national average), and around 3-3.5% have EHCPs. Increasingly, I’ve noticed that working memory challenges are closely tied to many of these needs. I also suspect that changes in children’s experiences outside of school – including a lot of technology use and instant feedback digital environments – mean they don’t always get the chance to practise working memory in natural ways.

Why Recall?

We originally relied on teacher assessment, informal observation and a mix of standardised and in class tests to assess working memory. It worked to an extent, but didn’t give us the clarity or consistency we needed – especially with so many pupils who don’t fit neatly into expected profiles.

When GL Assessment emailed inviting us to trial Recall, their digital working‑memory tool, we saw the opportunity immediately. What really appealed to us was that Recall doesn’t just give a general overview of working memory – it breaks it down into three areas: word recall, pattern recall and counting recall. That level of detail is exactly what we needed to understand our pupils more precisely and identify barriers that might otherwise be missed.

Rolling out Recall in school

We began by assessing all the pupils on our SEND register, as well as those with EHCPs or known diagnoses. Then we broadened it to include children that staff were concerned about, along with pupils who sit in that ‘borderline’ group: not officially disadvantaged, but clearly experiencing challenges at home that impact their learning.

Because of how our children responded to the tasks, we ended up testing many of them individually. Some children talked aloud while trying to remember numbers or patterns; others used finger counting or tapping strategies. To get the most accurate results, we made sure each child had a quiet, uninterrupted space to work in.

One thing that really stood out was how much the children enjoyed the pattern recall task. Many told us it felt like games they play at home, which immediately put them at ease.

Insights that reshaped our assumptions

The results genuinely surprised us. Some children who we expected to perform strongly found certain tasks difficult, while others exceeded our expectations. Even within specific SEND profiles (e.g., autistic pupils) the variation was huge.

It was a powerful reminder that every child is uniquely wired. Having this detailed picture helped us to challenge our own assumptions and better understand the individual, not the label.

Supporting teaching and learning

Rather than creating new interventions straight away, I focused on giving teachers the space to explore the results. Year group teams compared profiles, looked for patterns and discussed how they could adapt their teaching.

Since then, we’ve embedded more opportunities for verbal rehearsal, tapping, talking through thinking and other strategies that support working memory. These were all things we saw children naturally turn to during the assessment and we’re now building them into everyday practice.

Most importantly, teachers are more aware than ever of the cognitive processes at play in their classrooms. That awareness is transforming how they support children day to day.

Strengthening communication with parents

We shared all results with parents. For some of our more vulnerable families, we spent time going through the reports with them. Many recognised their own difficulties in their child’s profile, which opened up incredibly honest and productive conversations.

It also helped parents to understand what working memory actually means – and why their child might struggle in certain areas of learning.

A valuable new source of evidence

One of the biggest benefits for me as a SENDCo is the quality of evidence Recall provides for EHCP applications and exam access arrangements. The process is getting increasingly challenging, and local authorities rely heavily on the documentation we submit.

Recall has become a key piece of evidence for us. It gives us a clear, reliable way to demonstrate how and why certain children struggle in typical classroom conditions. I fully intend to use Recall data when preparing access arrangement paperwork for our Year 6 cohort.

Simple to implement and fully supported

The support from GL Assessment has been excellent. The instructions were clear, the guidance easy to follow and every query I had (especially around adding or changing pupils) was answered quickly and helpfully.

The fact that I could hand printed instructions to teachers or TAs, and feel confident they could administer the assessment independently, was a huge benefit.

Looking ahead: whole school screening

Recall has had a positive impact on the attainment of our children, as we now know how to support them with their memory recall. We can use the insights we’ve gained to ensure that we’re delivering content in a more visual way to support specific learners.

We know that children who are accessing learning and achieving at school will have better outcomes in all aspects of their day-to-day school life – including their wellbeing. Based on the impact we’ve already seen with our vulnerable and borderline pupils, I’m seriously considering assessing every child this year. The insights have been that valuable.

Recall has given me – and my colleagues – a much deeper understanding of our pupils. It’s helping us personalise learning, strengthen classroom practice and build a clearer picture of each child’s needs. I’m genuinely excited to continue using it.