Last updated: 05 Aug 2008

New arrivals aged 14 to 16 can experience significant success, securing pathways to academic and vocational courses at sixth-form and further-education level.

Entitlement to school places

New arrivals aged 14 to 16 are entitled to the same schooling as all children. For more information see the 'Schooling 5-16' area of this site.

Race relations legislation requires schools to promote good race relations and has implications for how schools ensure and support the access to education of all pupils, including later arrivals at key stage 3 and 4. The 'Race relations legislation' area of this site provides information on this.

Key issues

The key stage 4 statutory requirements are intended to increase curriculum flexibility and the potential for individualised learning programmes.

Some schools can find it challenging to develop the curriculum to include new arrivals because:

• students will come with a wide variety of school experiences or in some cases no schooling at all. The 'Children with little or no prior education' area of this site offers guidance on teaching these students
• many students will arrive with EAL needs although their skills in other languages may be well developed
• students who recently attended school in their own country are unlikely to have studied the same examination syllabus as their peers in the UK
• some students might have gaps in their learning resulting from interrupted schooling
• students who are unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, and are looked after by local authorities, may fall within the 14 to 16 age group. The 'Unaccompanied children' area of this site offers information on these pupils. The education of asylum-seeker pupils (Ofsted, 2003) recognises the particular difficulties schools faced in providing an appropriate curriculum for unaccompanied minors in key stages 3 and 4.

Once the school identifies a new arrival’s skills, learning pathways that can build on prior knowledge and achievement may be hard to secure because:

• there may be little provision to support learners new to English and little recognition of the needs of more advanced learners in acquiring academic English
• teachers may find it hard to modify the curriculum to meet the individual student’s needs late in the course of study
• late-arriving students' preferred option choices may be full, and access to other school-based course activities may be difficult, including GNVQ courses, work experience and careers advice
• supporting students and their carers to make informed choices can be hard when the student is separated from his or her family or the family members are unused to the English education system and unable to speak or read English
• lack of success in examination-focused lesson activities may cause students to become demotivated. This can affect attendance and achievement.

School performance tables and new arrivals with EAL

QCA provides guidance for schools and LAs concerned about the impact of new arrivals on performance tables.

The performance of international new arrivals in the national end of key stage tests and GCSE can, in certain circumstances, be excluded from the school’s results when calculated for the national school performance tables. This relates specifically to pupils who have arrived in the country in the previous two years and who speak English as an additional language.

Further guidance is available from the DCSF's annual guidance booklet to secondary schools on completing Form S4 (Amending number of 15 year olds on roll: additional information) and S5 (Amending number of students eligible for key stage 3) in Secondary school performance tables: procedures for checking and providing information by schools (contact the Forvus helpline on 020 7819 1040).

Promoting inclusion: some suggestions

Schools can promote the inclusion and achievement of these students by providing the following.

Comprehensive and accessible information so the young person is consulted and is aware of the English education system and how to access additional advice and support.

Good initial assessment that provides teachers and other key workers with information that can support access to a broad and balanced curriculum. The 'Initial assessment' area of this site offers guidance on this

Creative and flexible teacher responses to the needs of new arrivals, modifying the curriculum where appropriate. The 'Modifying and adapting the curriculum' area of this site offers guidance on this.

Provision of appropriate EAL support and access to the curriculum through the use of the first language.

A range of curriculum pathways at key stage 4. This can mean schools are:

• accurately matching assessment information with the courses on offer within the curriculum
• asking students to choose a curriculum pathway that comprises a constrained choice of subjects in order to build in additional opportunities for extra study or EAL support. This can increase student motivation, reduce course changes, maximise success and provide for individual progression
• identifying vocational routes and work-related programmes. Partnerships with Connexions, further education providers and work-related educational and training organisations can give invaluable help in identifying or developing appropriate programmes
• providing access to supplementary or additional opportunities tailored to respond to an individual student’s needs. Any additional projects need to promote access to a broad and balanced curriculum, the progress file achievement planner, effective pastoral provision, careers advice and links to college or sixth-form courses
• emphasising the positive aspects of each pathway to the students for whom it is appropriate
• establishing pathways only when they provide equally viable alternatives.

Support for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, including a designated teacher, where possible trained in asylum-seeker and refugee issues. Where levels of care have been lacking, some schools have provided parental substitution such as visiting unaccompanied children in care accommodation or a teacher accompanying the child on parent’s evenings.

Intensive support from key workers, especially Connexions personal advisers.

Particular support for attendance.

Case studies

Supporting the integration and achievement of newly arrived refugee students in year 11

The attached case study demonstrates how an LA has worked in partnership with schools to develop effective ways of supporting the integration of refugee new arrivals at key stage 4.

Useful weblinks

Please note: QCA is not responsible for the content of external sites

14-19 learning
This website includes advice to teachers on providing a flexible and differentiated 14 to 19 curriculum to meet individual needs. From this website you can download Designing a personalised curriculum for alternative provision at key stage 4. This guidance supports schools, LAs and their partner providers in reviewing and developing the curriculum within alternative settings and establishing high expectations for students’ learning, achievement and progression. It emphasises the question ‘What does this young person need?’ rather than ‘What is available?’.

Connexions
Connexions offers a range of guidance and support for 13- to 19-year-olds. This site provides information about Connexions services, including the provision of personal advisers. The guidance report Connexions supporting young asylum seekers and refugees can also be downloaded from this section of the site.

DCSF: School and college achievement and attainment tables (formerly performance tables)
This section of the DCSF website contains performance tables from current and previous years.

Ofsted: The education of asylum-seeker pupils
This downloadable Ofsted report (2003) is an evaluation of the impact on schools of the arrival of asylum-seeking pupils. Inspectors visited 37 schools in 11 different local education authorities. They refer to the particular barriers to learning unaccompanied asylum-seeking children face. Good practice case studies include LA support to schools admitting 14 to 16 new arrivals.

Refugee Council: A case for change: how refugee children in England are missing out
This report (2002) contains findings from the monitoring project of the Refugee Children’s Consortium recording the difficulties young refugees encountered accessing services, including education.

Refugee Council: Separated children in the UK
This report (2001) presents an overview of the situation and offers a number of recommendations.

Save the Children: Cold comfort: young separated refugees in England
This Save the Children report (2001) identified significant numbers of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in England with inadequate education provision or none at all. Those who accessed schooling or college had experienced long delays finding a place. The research also confirmed that mainstream schooling is what refugee children need, and that they can contribute significantly to the achievement and ethos of the schools they join.

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