Agenda item

The Chair welcomed County Councillor Phillippa Williamson, Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Schools and Ajay Sethi, Head of Learning Services and Skills to the meeting.

The report presented the Lancashire Statement of Priorities for 16 – 19 Education and Skills for consideration. The document provided a strategic overview of the education and training provision being accessed by Lancashire residents aged 16 – 19 and those aged 19 – 24 who had an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) and were accessing provision at college, SSF, academy or apprenticeship provider.

In terms of the local context, Lancashire had 8 colleges, 2 Foundation Learning Providers, 9 School Sixth Forms (SSF) and 10 Academies. In 2017/18 the national achievement rate tables showed that, for 16-18 year olds achievements, five Lancashire colleges were in the top 10% of all General Further Education Colleges and Sixth Form Colleges in England.

Members were informed that the document was shared with colleges, key apprenticeship providers, school and academy sixth forms, the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), Ofsted, Blackpool Council, Blackburn with Darwen Council and Leaders and Chief Executives of district councils.

It was reported that the Statement of Priorities informed individual conversations with college principals and senior management teams to understand how they could contribute towards priorities. There had been positive feedback from colleges on the use of this document to inform their strategy and curriculum planning. They had been used internally to inform decision making and development.

Figures presented to the committee showed that between December 2018 and February 2019, an average of 519 young people aged 16 and 17 were found not to be in education, employment or training (NEET). This amounted to 2.1% of all residents in that age group. Identifying these young people was a huge challenge in Lancashire. One of the challenges was around data sharing. Schools had a duty to provide information and guidance to pre-16 aged pupils about their next step. Sixth form and further education colleges had been reminded of the need to help the county council track their students' progress. The Tracking Participation Guidance Document had been reissued to schools and colleges. As a result, members were informed that the figures of the unknowns was already reducing.

The committee was informed that Lancashire was in a good position in terms of the further education opportunities on offer, with some of the highest rated colleges in the country and a network of enterprise advisers linking up students and employers. It was also noted that further education providers were co-operating with the council to ensure there was a broad range of courses on offer to encourage teenagers to continue studying. Young people learned in different ways, so having qualifications that were academic, vocational and occupational, supported different learning styles.

Members were advised that there were council officers in place, dedicated to providing post-16 options advice to young people who had been in council care or had special needs and disabilities.

The NEET rate for young people who were in council care was higher than that for all Lancashire 16 – 17 year olds. The proportion of unknowns in that age group was slightly lower than the general population. For young people with special education needs and disabilities, the known NEET rate was broadly similar to that of all students in the relevant age range, while the unknown rate was much lower than the general population.

The committee enquired on the reasons behind the closure of sixth form colleges. Members were informed that this was in part due to  financial liability. And the quality of colleges and the student experience was also taken into consideration. Cross border education was not uncommon. Students were prepared to travel for a better quality of college.

The committee enquired about the provision of further education from the authority to the rural community. It was reported that  a lot of young people moved to urban areas for their education.

Resolved: That;

  i.  The report presented be noted.

  ii.  Suggested improvements and amendments for the next version of the Lancashire Statement of Priorities for 16 – 19 Education and Skills be considered.