This research, commissioned by the Department for Education (DfE), took place in the spring and summer terms of the 2017-18 academic year. It aimed to identify what secondary schools across England were doing to support attainment amongst the most able disadvantaged students from Key stage 2 to Key Stage 4. It had a particular focus on schools where these pupils were making better than average progress1 . The policy context was a focus on closing the attainment gap in schools as part of wider efforts to increase social mobility. Previous research2 had identified disadvantaged pupils who attained in the top 10% at the end of primary school as being much less likely than their more advantaged peers to achieve highly at the end of Key Stage 4. The research reported here was largely qualitative in nature. It involved a scoping survey of over 400 secondary schools, followed by telephone interviews with 21 diverse schools with successful experience to share and further case study work in three schools with well-developed and effective support in place for their most able disadvantaged pupils.