Since the 1980s, young people who are disaffected from school have been a policy concern for successive UK governments, resulting in a series of vocational qualifications and interventions aiming to engage 14-16 year-old learners (Raffo, 2003; Haynes, 2008; Ross, 2009). The Key Stage 4 (KS4) curriculum, which is essentially school-based, is targeted at 14-16 year olds, who have a current statutory entitlement to leave all forms of learning at the age of 16.  Consequently, in 2008, the issue of disaffection from post-14 education was further amplified when the previous Labour government passed legislation to ensure that all young people in England remain in some form of accredited education or training to the age of 17 by 2013 and to the age of 18 by 2015. This policy has been subsequently endorsed by the recently elected Coalition Government in its White Paper, ‘The Importance of Teaching’ (DfE, 2010). 

Delivery of the Raising of the Participation Age (RPA) agenda will entail supporting every young person to make a successful transition into post-16 learning (Maguire et al, 2010).   However, young people who are disaffected or ‘at risk’ of becoming disaffected from schooling are a diverse group since the underlying causes and expressions of disaffection can be both varied and complex for individual young people, with different consequences and solutions (Haywood et al, 2008; Speilhofer et al, 2009; Ross 2009).  This suggests that approaches to engage disaffected learners through to post-16 learning will need to be as varied as the client group themselves.

This paper will draw on a study commissioned by the Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency (CEI, 2010) in England which:

• explored good practice in using work related learning (WRL) to motivate disaffected learners in Key Stage 4, and
• considered strategies which can be applied in a broad range of educational settings to support the RPA agenda. 

This research identified a number of common characteristics and key messages that offer useful pointers for engaging or re-engaging a diverse group of disaffected learners within the KS4 curriculum and to progress into post-16 learning. 

CEDEFOP (2010), Guiding At-Risk Youth Through Learning to Work, Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union. CEI (2010), 14-16 Applied Learning Programmes. Guidance on using work-related learning to motivate disaffected learners’, QCDA (unpublished). DfE (2010), The Importance of Teaching, The Stationery Office Gracey, S. and Kelly, S. (2010), Changing the NEET Mindset. Achieving more effective transitions between education and work, Learning and Skills Network Haynes, G. (2008), ‘Secondary head teachers’ experiences and perceptions of vocational courses in the Key Stage 4 curriculum: some implications for the 14–19 Diplomas’, Journal of Education and Work, Vol. 21, No. 4, pp 333–347. Hayward, G., Wilde, S., and Williams, R. (2008) Rathbone/Nuffield Review Engaging Youth Enquiry, Nuffield Review Maguire, S., Newton, B., Laczik., A and White, C. (2010) Raising the Participation Age: Identifying and Supporting Young People in Jobs without Training (JWT) back into Learning (Bury, Wigan and Salford). Wigan MBC. Raffo, C. (2003), ‘Disaffected Young People and the Work-related Curriculum at Key Stage 4: issues of social capital development and learning as a form of cultural practice’, Journal of Education and Work, Vol. 16, No. 1. Ross, A. (2009), Disengagement from education among 14-16 year olds, Department for Children, Schools and Families. DCSF- RR178 Spielhofer, T., Benton, T., Evans, K., Featherstone, G., Golden, S., Nelson, J., and Smith, P. (2009b) Increasing Participation Understanding Young People who do not Participate in Education or Training at 16 and 17, DCSFRR072