Can an iPad help schoolchildren get better grades? The appeal of a tablet specifically was also the extra speed: it removes the tedious waiting for school computers to boot up, says Trimmer, and it allows feedback to speed up. There's an app called Nearpod where, when the children are following a presentation, they can fire back answers, and a child's answer can be picked up on immediately. There's a window with children if they get instant feedback and the results are incredible. Learning about figures such as Martin Luther King, too, Trimmer says students can incorporate text, video and pictures in ways previously impossible. "They can record their own speeches next to his," he says, "and they really own their education." Teachers initially simply substitute doing something on a whiteboard, for instance, with the iPad, although Trimmer says the increased freedom the devices offer is the real appeal. "Taking a school from poor to good is about tightening up," he says. But good to outstanding is about letting go, both as a manager and a teacher and the iPad allows us to do that to let people be more creative. It's not been without controversy, however: the school ended up paying for 40 per cent of the devices itself, although many children were already using such devices at home. Parents are given the power to restrict certain apps, but other schools taking a similar approach have either locked everything or nothing away from children. And there is also the fact that iPads are by no means the cheapest tablets on the market either. Hove Park, which is also now lending primary age children iPads, went through what Trimmer calls a lengthy procurement exercise, and secured a good price: "I don't want to sound like an Apple lover but I think it is more seamless and it is more creative. It still feels like a significant step ahead of its rivals but we would look at procurement again in the future," he says, and adds "it might be different for a different school." Overall, however, Trimmer has no doubts that his school's experience could be a template: "I think tablets are very empowering because of the speed. In terms of education, I think it's a game changer," he says. I would like to see them across all schools.