Making maths count in Liverpool

A campaign to drive up numeracy and mathematics skills in Liverpool has been launched.

Liverpool Counts has launched a new ‘quality mark’ to recognise excellent practice in schools and other education establishments as part of a drive to improve attainment in maths at all levels in education.

Dr Graham Lawler – who created the highly acclaimed BBC Bite Size GCSE revision guide for advanced maths and wrote a book with the late Sir Arthur C Clarke about understanding maths – has been appointed to lead Liverpool Counts.

The scheme is spearheaded by the Liverpool Learning Partnership and comprises education leaders in the city who support and challenge each other, with the aim to: raise standards in mathematics and numeracy with fun and joy of numbers at its heart; to challenge perceptions and change attitudes towards numbers and mathematics; to raise the profile of numeracy using activities, events and resources based on real-life, and to bring relevance to numeracy through problem solving demonstrating it is an essential skill.

Although exam results have improved in Liverpool over the last decade, performance in maths still lags behind English and recent changes to the GCSE examination means it now incorporates many topics that were previously confined to the A level paper.

Dr Lawler says: “This project will build on the good work that is already happening in Liverpool. Our schools are improving but we do recognise there is more to do. Our companies and organisations will also be involved as will our colleges, and we all need to play our part – which means mums and dads as well.

“We all need to adopt the national numeracy slogan ‘I can’t do maths…YET’ and take action to learn!”

Councillor Nick Small, Cabinet member for education and skills, says: “Liverpool schools have made massive progress over the last decade and exam results have improved immensely, but maths results lag behind those in English.

“Good numeracy skills are an increasingly important part of many skilled jobs and essential to everyday life as an adult. If you can’t do maths then you won’t be able to understand your payslips and bills, or get the best shopping deals.

“Liverpool Counts is about making numeracy accessible and fun to improve your maths skills in a way that works for you.”

Liverpool Counts is based on the successful model of Liverpool City of Readers, which is contributing to the raising of standards in reading and writing.