New Developments In The Education Of Looked After Children In Highland
Highland is one of 7 Council’s in Scotland that have been successful in securing additional funding to improve educational outcomes for Looked After Children. This Friday’s Joint Committee on Children & Young People will receive a report on the new initiatives that will be developed with this £400,000 over the next two years.
The local authority has statutory duties in relation to children and young people who are looked after. Many within this group, including those living in residential or foster care, will have had disrupted childhoods, without the educational opportunities that others take for granted.
Looked After Children represent around 1 % of the Highland school population. National research indicates that they do not achieve as well in life as might be expected. When announcing this new funding recently, Peter Peacock, Minister for Education & Young People said: "No child should be born to fail and we must ensure all youngsters get the best possible start in life. But that is not happening for too many of our Looked After Children. Academically, these vulnerable youngsters are just not doing as well as they could. This is completely unacceptable."
"Looked after young people need more opportunities to fulfil their potential. These projects will give young people in care an extra opportunity to find their strengths, excel at them and grow in to the confident, successful citizens that Scotland needs."
The Highland Council has employed an Education Link Worker for four years to ensure that the education needs of those children are being addressed, with a particular focus on those looked after away from home. The Council is now developing this range of additional measures to support these children and young people when they are experiencing difficulties:
A new post of Home Education Link Worker will support children who are on social work supervision while living at home. Children looked after at home need a special focus, as the educational attainment for them continues to give cause for concern.
A joint development between the Highland Council and the Highland Football Academy will focus on Primary 7 to Secondary 2 age groups, who have experienced difficulties in mainstream school. This project will provide a structured and focused individual programme, addressing each child’s social, emotional, behavioural and learning needs. It aims at reintegrating them into mainstream school within the timescale of a school term.
A teacher is to be appointed as a Learning Development Worker. He or she will focus on work with staff in residential children’s centres, to ensure that all Looked After Children in these settings will experience and benefit from living in an educationally rich environment.
Finally, a range of out-of-school initiatives, such as specialist tutoring schemes, one-to-one tuition and homework clubs, will be delivered to individual children.
The Council’s spokesperson on Children’s Services, Councillor Margaret Davidson, has welcomed these new services: She said: "We aspire for our Looked After Children in Highland to fulfil their potential. That means getting standard and higher grades, and having an educational experience that prepares young people for further or higher education and employment."
"I am delighted that the Scottish Executive has supported these exciting new developments, which will add to our other services, and will help improve the life chances of these young people."