14-19 Collaborative Strategy

The Need for Action

The DfES (Department for Education and Skills) 14-19 "Opportunity & Excellence" Report in January 2003 set out a staged process of reform designed to offer young people a more personalised learning pathway. This will be achieved through widening choice, strengthening vocational education and work-related learning, providing greater curriculum flexibility, enhancing advice and guidance and providing additional funding to support innovation and need. These key principles and proposals will be further clarified and will form the basis of the Tomlinson Report scheduled for publication in the autumn of 2004.

Bexley mirrors the issues identified in "Tomlinson". A sizeable number of our young people are still failing to achieve their potential and the curriculum offer in many of our schools has remained largely "traditional". This has resulted in higher than average levels of disaffection, high levels of exclusion and too many of our young people becoming disengaged from the education process at too early an age.

Post-16 "stay-on" rates are well below expectation and there has been a relative dearth of vocational or work-related learning opportunities that offer alternative routes for progression, offer parity of esteem and respond effectively to skill shortages. Schools and the college have only recently started to develop collaborative models of delivery appropriate to need.

Key points for action:

Develop a more appropriate range of courses across the Borough that are complementary and cover a wide range of subjects and skills
Create greater flexibility within the delivery of the curriculum to allow for personalised learning pathways
Increase the provision of work related opportunities
Enhance and build new partnerships to increase opportunity for all young people across Bexley
Develop "Centres of Vocational Excellence"
Develop non traditional pathways for progression
Utilise "Aim Higher" funding to encourage greater participation in Higher Education
Enhance existing collaborative post-14 and post-16 partnerships and establish new ones where appropriate
Invest in appropriate infrastructure using Building Schools for the Future (BSFF) proposals to enhance provision and collaboration
Increase information, guidance and advice to young people to ensure appropriate individualised learning pathways
Bid for further Learning Skills Council monies to enhance provision
Improve post-16 "stay-on" rates
Enhance entry and foundation level course provision
Reduce levels of exclusion through more effective behaviour management and support strategies

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