Related research & good practice
Care leavers
Care leavers are a chronically under-represented group in further and higher education. Many of these children face significant barriers to entry including lower attainment, lack of positive role models, low expectations (from carers and advisers), low aspirations and a lack of confidence in the affordability of higher education. As things stand, only about one or two in a hundred actually continue into HE. Indeed, a high proportion leave care aged 19 without any form of purposeful activity such as employment, training or education. A care leaver is roughly 10 times more likely to go to prison than to go to university.
The report ‘By Degrees: From care to university’ and the Government’s Green Paper ‘Care matters: transforming the lives of children and young people in care’ both highlight the experiences and specific needs of this under-represented group.
The Frank Buttle Trust has also been working with Universities UK, Guild HE, The Association of Colleges and AMOSSHE to develop its Statement of Commitment to Care Leavers in HE. This Commitment underpins the Frank Buttle Trust Quality Mark, which recognises good practice in the HE sector, in supporting care leavers.
We are pleased to be able to lend our support to the care leavers agenda and will be issuing a guidance note to institutions asking that they consider how their existing access agreements address the needs of care leavers, and to draw their attention to the Quality Mark.