Case Study: Supporting Young People Leaving Care in Post-16 Education

We recently spoke with Patrick, Student Success Lead/Care Experienced & Estranged Student Contact at Goldsmith University of London. Below you can read his experience of completing the LASER e-learning for Supporting Young People Leaving Care in Post-16 Education.

The comprehensive three module e-learning course has been designed for those working with young people with care experience. More information is available here.

When I joined Goldsmiths University as Student Success Lead, I knew that one of my areas of focus would be care experienced and estranged students. I had some experience working with this demographic from previous roles, but I wanted to make sure I was in the strongest position possible to have a real impact on our student cohort.

Honestly the best part of my role so far has been meeting with the care experienced and estranged students at Goldsmiths college, hearing about their victories and their struggles, and being able to take action to support them within the institution. Higher Education can be a real maze of processes, systems, and support teams, and having the opportunity to guide students through that labyrinth is truly invaluable. I also love hearing about the successes of our student cohort, from students being able to re-enrol in their studies after challenging first years, to students being elected in to Student Union roles. Building those trusting relationships with students is incredibly valuable to me.

I first learned about LASER’s Supporting Young People Leaving Care in Post-16 Education e-learning course through a colleague of mine in the Widening Participation team when I started working at Goldsmiths. She had recently completed the training and spoke highly of how it had informed her practice, and it made sense for me to also complete the training. The signing-up process was relatively simple, especially with her guidance. Over the course of two to three weeks, I spent approximately three hours a week completing all three units of the training, to make sure I could give it it’s due diligence. The activities checking learning and comprehension of the training were welcomed and gave me a good chance to consolidate learning over the course of the programme.

One of the key challenges I faced in my role prior to taking LASER’s course, to be completely candid, was my own ingrained assumptions about the experiences a care experienced or estranged student may have had. It’s really easy to slip into a deficit focused approach when working to support students, and the training really highlighted to me the breadth of experience within this student demographic. I think the value of case studies cannot be underestimated and there were a reasonable number in the training showcasing real-life perspectives. For the low cost and high quality, the course proved an excellent investment and I would recommend the training to anyone going into a role to support care experienced and estranged students.

The e-learning helped to reframe my understanding of the needs of care experienced students. It facilitated me moving away from a deficit focused approach when working with this student demographic. It reinforced the value in building strong, trusting relationships with the students I support, and provided some worthwhile suggestions on how to develop those.

I believe that anybody working frontline with students – including lecturers, personal tutors, student wellbeing, the student registry and library staff – would benefit from this training. There is a general lack of knowledge about care experienced or estranged students in services across many institutions, most notably Student Wellbeing and senior leadership positions. Coordinating a support scheme was challenging as a result of this. I think all senior leadership positions should undertake training of this kind as the lessons learned can be applied to many student demographics, and provide a good understanding of how to support individuals regardless of their level of need.

For anyone considering LASER’s Supporting Young People Leaving Care in Post-16 Education e-learning course, my advice is to approach it with an open mind and willingness to be challenged in your perception of care experienced and estranged students, and engage fully with the reflective practice within it. I have kept all the documents I produced for the course, and refer back to them regularly.

LASER’s e-learning course is important because it provides an effective baseline to provide support staff with best practice tips, showcases a variety of student experiences and allows us as practitioners to reflect on what may already be working (or not) within our institutions. The course has prepared me with the essentials I need to support care experienced and estranged students, mostly around understanding student needs, not making assumptions about someone’s circumstances and the importance of consistency and boundaries when building trust. These are key tenets that both my colleague and I have carried forward in all our programme and intervention design and continue to discuss regularly. I’m grateful for the insights gained through the training and continue to see its value in my daily interactions with care experienced and estranged students.

Laser also offers The Level 3 Award in Supporting Young People Leaving Care in Post-16 Education, this qualification is intended to enhance and recognise the skills and knowledge of the ‘Designated Member of Staff’ in Further and Higher Education Institutions responsible for young people with care experience. Please click here to find out more.

If you would like to talk to us about offering this qualification, please get in touch.