Evaluation of the Young Apprenticeships Programme: Outcomes for cohort 3
01 November 2010
The Young Apprenticeship (YA) programme was established in 2004 to provide 14 to 16 year olds with the opportunity to gain knowledge and skills in a specific vocational area and achieve a relevant qualification. The first two cohorts of participants in Year 10 embarked on their programmes in September 2004 and 2005 and a third cohort of learners started in 2006.
This report focuses on the outcomes for the third cohort of participants and explores their achievements on the YA programme and overall, and their destinations following completion of their YA course.
The findings in this report indicate that the outcomes for young people who participated in the third cohort of the YA programme were similar to those for previous cohorts in so far as the majority of Level 2 qualifications were achieved and around one fifth of participants progressed into an Apprenticeship post-16 which is greater than the proportion nationally (six per cent). Moreover, in terms of their total points achieved and their eight highest grades achieved, participants in the YA programme continued to achieve more at key stage 4 than similar young people who did not participate in the programme.
Key Findings
- The majority of the Young Apprenticeship (YA) programme qualifications (identified by the sector as required for the YA programme) at Level 2, taken by young people who completed the programme (85 %), were achieved. Nearly three quarters (73 %) of Level 1 qualifications were achieved.
- Looking at raw achievement rates there were no statistically significant differences, in terms of gender, recognition for action on the register of Special Educational Needs, or ethnicity between those who achieved or did not achieve a qualification that they had taken as part of the YA programme.
- Young people who were eligible for free school meals were significantly less likely to have achieved a qualification (76 %).