About the review
Purpose of the 16 to 19 review
The overall aim of the review was to improve the options and life chances of Kent’s young people by enhancing the education, skills and training opportunities available to them. To achieve this, it sought to develop a deeper and shared understanding of the issues facing both young people and providers.
The review was therefore delivered in collaboration with providers from across the sector, and with the involvement of young people, their parents and key stakeholders.
The process was overseen, guided and supported by Steering and Working groups with representation from across the sector and from stakeholders and providers.
The evidence base
The fieldwork to assemble the evidence base for the review took place throughout the 2021 Summer term.
A comprehensive programme of qualitative research was delivered by a multi-professional team drawn from KCC, The Education People (TEP) and other colleagues, and with the support of external experts from ACL consulting. This research team accumulated a substantial evidence base for the review, principally from:
- Interviews with post-16 providers (83 staff across 47 organisations representing 25% of the sector) and other post-16 stakeholders (15 interviews), 31 focus group discussions with young people in years 10, 11, 12 and 13
- Analysis of a range of relevant quantitative as well as the qualitative data
- Online questionnaires for young people, for parents and for providers and other stakeholders.
A draft of the findings and proposed recommendations was produced over the course of the 2021 Autumn term. A consultation to gather feedback from the sector on the draft proposals took place during the latter part of the 2021 Autumn term.
The review report
The full review report (PDF, 3.4 MB) was published on 28 April 2022.
An executive summary of the review (PDF, 1.3 MB) is also available.
The principal recommendations identify strategies to address the challenges faced. A Strategic Board has been set up to drive forward the development of 16 to 19 provision in the county. We are also looking to facilitate more local collaborations across the county to ensure that local offers meet the needs of all students at district level.
Relevant practice
Throughout the fieldwork, examples of relevant practice were identified that show how parts of the county are already responding to various issues raised by the review. The current list of relevant practice (PDF, 469.2 KB) linked to the relevant review recommendations has been published.
The review team are eager to build on what is there and would encourage providers to develop and share strong relevant practice which responds to the findings and recommendations in the review report. If you feel you have relevant practice to share, please complete the online form to share it with the team.
Further information
For further information or to participate, please contact the Core Team at pathwaysforall@kent.gov.uk.