Bridging Year 11 to 12: a tiered approach to NEETs

Blackpool and the Fylde College developed the Tiers of Transition project in 2023/24, with its first full cycle of implementation delivered in 2024/25. The project addresses a critical risk point in the student journey by targeting the transition from Year 11 to Year 12, to reduce the number of young people who become NEET across Blackpool, Fylde and Wyre.

Initially designed to support approximately 400 students, the project has expanded significantly with increased engagement from secondary schools and alternative provision and now supports up to 700 young people annually. A notable driver of demand has been the year-on-year increase in young people educated through elective home education (EHE), many of whom present with complex needs and require enhanced, personalised transition support.

This is a collaborative project with 28 local feeder schools/ alternative provisions, Blackpool Council and Lancashire County Council. It operates through a bespoke, tiered transition model, aligning intensity of support with assessed level of risk. The approach prioritises early identification, proactive engagement, and sustained, coordinated and wrap-around support through the first term of post-16 education, where the risk of disengagement is highest.

Delivery is led at B&FC by a dedicated Progress Coach Team, expanded to six full-time equivalent roles to meet rising demand. Particular emphasis is placed on students assessed with a high risk of NEET indicator (RONI) (our ‘RED’ students) and those EHE, to ensure resources are targeted to cohorts with the greatest vulnerability.

Recruitment to the project begins the summer term before students are due to leave secondary school, with a specific B&FC Get Ahead summer programme for those at risk of NEET. This programme identifies and supports barriers to education and aims to develop a sense of belonging. Students are assigned to a “progress coach” whose role is to support them throughout the transition to college with attendance monitoring and regular one-to-one meetings. Once they are fully settled, they are removed from the caseload, leaving the coaches with a smaller cohort who require further intervention.

Overall, the project seeks to improve readiness for education, employment or training (EET), reduce early withdrawal in Year 12, improve retention, and support positive long-term outcomes, including progression into higher levels of education.

The project has demonstrated a clear and measurable impact. In the 2024/25 cycle, 785 applicants identified as high risk of NEET successfully enrolled into FE, with 91% of students most at risk of NEET progressing successfully throughout the first term. Engagement and reintegration outcomes for EHE students improved, more than 10,000 interventions were delivered, and more than 200 coordinated referrals were made to specialist internal and external support services.