Raising the Participation Age and Young People’s

Employability Plan 2012-2016

“Young people not in education, employment or training at 16 to19 have poorer life chances than their peers and

are more likely to be a long term cost to the public purse”.

Against the odds, Audit Commission, July 2010

Our Vision

By 19 years of age every Surrey young person will be participating in education, training or employment with training.

Confident, effective and happy, Surrey young people will be well prepared for the challenges of work or further study. A well developed and capable character, literate, numerate with a good understanding of what to expect from the world of work.

Context

Raising Participation Age requires that by 2013 young people remain in education, training or employment to the end of Year 12 and then by 2015 to age 18

In Surrey the number of NEET young people has remained fairly static at ~1000 since 2003, but recently declined to ~900

Increasing employability is a key strategy to achieve full participation.

What we know

• Young people face a range of barriers to participation and certain groups are at particular risk of becoming NEET.

• Many young people are not ‘work ready’ or lack the ‘employability skills’ needed to start an apprenticeship.

• Not enough employers are employing young people.

Participation and demographics

Numbers of Young People

Year NEET Jobs without training

Unknown

Year 12 338 116 114

Year 13 415 339 322

Numbers of Young People Borough AY12 AY13

Elmbridge 29 37

Epsom & Ewell 18 31

Guildford 51 56

Mole Valley 33 21

Reigate & Banstead 40 54

Runnymead 23 39

Spelthorne 46 54

Surrey Heath 26 34

Tandridge 23 25

Waverley 22 28

Woking 27 36

TOTALS 338 415

Focus Groups: SCHOOL CURRICULUM

If school’s been bad, you’re not really going to want to go to college to learn because you ain’t been learning in your secondary school.

My school.. the NVQs that they offered were all hair and beauty, nail design and that was it.

I went to a construction site for a week and what they were teaching us in the classroom was nothing like actually on the site, so it’s just not the real world is it?

They were too focused on getting you through your GSCES- they do not give you real life skills just bits of paper

That’s the good thing about SPLASH , if you can’t find a job or placement this is a good place to come…that way you get more help to find a college, course or apprenticeship

ADVICE & GUIDANCEThey should give us things like telling us that we could do an apprenticeship or you could do voluntary work or something like that, not just say, ‘College, college, college.’

They were not realistic and honest with people-if they saw grades that weren't going to get into college they should say here are some other things you can do

If you've got some sort of learning disability are you getting the right help that you need to do well? …if you don’t do well,

you can’t get good grades and you can’t get a job.

I would have gone to college if EMA was still working.

DISADVANTAGE

They judge you on your appearance and not how you act and work

DISCRIMINATIONMost people don’t listen to people our age... [they] think we just hang around in the streets making trouble

As soon as you’re labelled as “the problem child”, they don’t want you at all. They don’t even bother trying with you either, they like just give up on you.

You always see anti-bullying signs up in schools yet bullying is going on right under their nose and no one is doing anything about itAt school for the whole 5 years , I was bullied... because of the bullies I came out with absolutely nothing

It’s about giving people a chance, to be honest, no matter what’s

gone on their life. Everyone deserves a chance, really.

JOB OPPORTUNITIESA lot of places want experience...how you can have experience, if you haven’t ever like had a chance to do it before?

Most jobs need 5 C grades… if you don’t have those grades that stops you from getting the job and makes its harder

Usually they say you are too young... they don’t get back to you at all and then you just don’t want to look for jobs anymore

You can’t get a job if you’ve got a criminal record, can you? Like CRB checks, you can’t work with young kids, you can’t work with any people. That’s what I wanted to do and I ruined it.

REGRET

People judge us… everyone makes mistakes… Come on, think of how many I’ve made in 17 years

You only get one or two chances in life or in school or whatever, but everyone makes mistakes

I would love to go back and

change everything that I’ve done!

It kind of feels too late…

Key Issues for Young People

• Realistic advice & guidance• Relevant curriculum offer• Access to employment

opportunities• Transport• Poor school experience• Self esteem and confidence• Prior experience and qualifications• Facing disadvantage• Regret and no second chances

The Young People’s Employability Plan 2012-16

Ensure good range of high quality education, training and employment opportunities to enable participation for all our young people.

Focus on ages 14-19, extending to 25 for young people with learning difficulties or disabilities.

Key Actions:Preparing

young people for

participation

Commissioning and developing opportunities

Aligning aspirations with

opportunities

Overcoming barriers

Tackling worklessness in

families

Participation Network

Youth Justice Management

Board

PETE Steering Group

ALPSSchool Phase

Councils

14-19 Partnership

PETE Clusters

11-19 Networks

SEND Stakeholder

Group

College Principals

Preparing Young People

• Raising participation as an opportunity• Changing expectations• Communications• Early help• Information, advice and guidance• Alternative pathways• Year 11/12 and RONI• Destination measures

Commissioning and developing opportunitiesMix & balance of provision 14-19

Targeted provision

On-line learning

Skills Centres

R4W – Ready for Work

Opportunities for Work - including apprenticeships

Aligning Aspirations with Opportunities

Understand the local job offer.

Mapping local offer

Ensure young people’s aspirations are realistic and stretching.

Matching to education and job opportunities.

On-line advice and guidance

Supporting SEND young people

Overcoming barriers to participation• Targeted bursaries• Free college meals• Targeted support for LAC/Care Leavers• Co-ordinated support re mental health • YSS support e.g. re homelessness

Tackling worklessness in families• Whole family approach• Integrated with Youth Contract and Job Centre

Plus• Joined up with family support• Local prevention

Achieving full participation• Full participation cannot be achieved by one

agency alone. • Challenges remain for key groups and particularly

in addressing financial hardship and transport

• What’s working well?• What more do we need to do?