We help MAT leaders improve school attendance, equity, and inclusion across their trust.
AV1 enables Multi-Academy Trusts to tackle persistent absence, strengthen belonging, and deliver a cost-effective way to keep every pupil connected to learning.
The attendance and inclusion challenge every MAT is facing right now
Persistent absence and widening attainment gaps continue to challenge MAT leaders nationwide. Ensuring consistent access to learning and inclusion across multiple schools remains a complex, resource-intensive task.
AV1 helps trusts address these challenges head-on – fulfilling statutory responsibilities while improving pupil outcomes. The telepresence robot keeps pupils connected to lessons, classmates, and school life when they can’t attend in person – maintaining engagement and supporting a smooth return to the classroom.
The Inclusive Mainstream Fund: What MATs need to know
What the IMF funds
The Inclusive Mainstream Fund is a new £400m annual investment for mainstream schools, designed to build evidence-informed inclusive practice for pupils with SEND and additional needs.
As part of this, by 31 December all schools must publish a statutory Inclusion Strategy outlining how they are addressing commonly occurring and predictable needs, such as pupils unable to attend or take part in lessons due to medical needs, SEND, or EBSA.
For Multi-Academy Trusts, funding will be paid directly to trusts from July 2026, creating an opportunity to invest strategically in scalable, proven inclusion across schools.
AV1 can form part of a proactive inclusion strategy that helps pupils stay connected to learning, peers, and school life during periods of absence.
A high-return use of your IMF allocation
An AV1 deployment is typically only 35% of a school’s first year IMF allocation, yet it can significantly reduce spend on other interventions. This invest-to-save model allows Trusts to meet their statutory inclusion duties while protecting core budgets from the rising costs of Alternative Provision.
35%
74%
94%
How AV1 maps to the DfE's 7 IMF themes
The DfE expects IMF spending to be allocated across seven themes of inclusive practice. AV1 provides direct, evidenceable contribution to all seven.
Ambitious leadership & governance
Trust-wide AV1 deployment, centrally procured, flexibly deployed across schools is a strategic, system-level inclusion investment. It demonstrates that inclusion is an institutional priority, not a school-by-school emergency measure, with outcomes data for governors and senior leaders.
Evidence-based support & early intervention
Telepresence Robots are formally endorsed by the DfE following a major national trial. It enables schools to intervene at the earliest signs of EBSA, dysregulation, medical absence, transition challenges or disengagement. This helps prevent needs from escalating to costly alternative provision, EHC reassessments or specialist placements.
High-quality teaching for all learners
AV1 keeps absent pupils in the live lesson, hearing the teacher, following the curriculum, and participating in class discussion. No separate adapted content is needed as the pupil experiences the same high-quality teaching as their peers, in real time.
Accessible & enriching provision beyond the classroom
AV1 extends inclusion beyond core lessons, pupils can participate in group discussions, extracurricular activities, and social moments that build independence and prepare them for a return to full school life.
Safe culture fostering belonging & attendance
Belonging is not possible if a pupil is invisible to their class. AV1 maintains the pupil's social and emotional presence with evidence showing this significantly improves reintegration outcomes.
Strong partnerships with families & wider services
AV1 helps pupils stay connected to learning and school life during periods of absence or transition. It enables schools, families, and wider services to maintain consistent communication and coordinated support, helping staff take a more proactive approach to inclusion and reintegration.
Inclusive environments & accessibility
AV1 is used within school as well as remotely, giving pupils who struggle with sensory overload, crowded spaces, or overwhelming classroom environments a way to access learning from a quieter space on site.
By introducing AV1 across your schools, MAT leaders can:
Tackle persistent absence
across vulnerable groups with a scalable, cost-efficient solution
Protect learning continuity
and equal access for pupils with health-related or SEND needs
Enable early intervention
to prevent long-term disengagement and learning loss
Support confident reintegration
after periods of extended absence
Strengthen equity and inclusion
across all schools in the trust
Meet statutory responsibilities
to each school efficiently and consistently
Lead with innovation
AV1 costs significantly less than other alternative provision
Meeting Ofsted Expectations on Inclusion and Attendance
Meet core expectations in the updated Ofsted framework.
Proven and trusted by 1,000+ schools and
MATs nationwide
_Green.jpg)
“AV1 is a game-changer for our students. It enables those who would otherwise be left behind to experience the full classroom dynamic, maintain their learning progress, and eventually reintegrate into daily school life.”
LIFT Secondary Phase SENDCo
“We even use AV1 on site, for those who struggle with large, busy, sensory overload environments. A pupil can be in a safe space or room within school, and access an AV1 in their regular classroom.”
"If students aren’t able to succeed with traditional approaches, you have to try something different. If a piece of technology can help a student access education when they otherwise couldn’t, it’s worth it"
Endorsed by the Department for Education
In 2019, the DfE funded 90 AV1 robots in the UK’s largest telepresence trial. The results were clear: pupil’s attendance, confidence, and reintegration all improved – 75% kept up with schoolwork and peers, and 50% reintegrated faster.
Building on that success, the 2023 DfE guidance formally recommends telepresence as a recognised way to keep pupils connected to school and curriculum – exactly what AV1 delivers.
Supporting MAT leadership teams across every function
AV1 helps trust leaders deliver measurable impact – from strategic governance to digital inclusion in everyday learning. Whether your focus is academic progress, attendance, SEND provision, or long-term cost efficiency, AV1 supports your goals across the trust.
For CEOs and Executive Leaders
Demonstrate measurable ROI and drive innovation across your trust.
For Directors of Education
Guarantee curriculum continuity and equitable learning across schools.
For Directors of Attendance and Inclusion
Tackle persistent absence with a scalable, early-intervention tool.
For Directors of SEND
Strengthen inclusion pathways and maintain learning engagement for vulnerable pupils.
For CFOs
Reduce per-pupil absence costs and unlock measurable savings across your trust.
What your MAT can report on
AV1 is used by over 2,500 schools across the UK and internationally. The outcomes are consistent: maintained curriculum access, improved reintegration rates and, critically, data that SENCOs can put in front of an inspector.
Missed our recent MAT leadership webinar?
Rewatch this high-impact session – Beyond the classroom: rethinking Alternative Provision for equity, engagement and impact – to hear how leading MATs are building scalable, compassionate strategies that make inclusion real and measurable across every school.
