The step to higher education is daunting for everyone – but for those who come from a care background it can be even more daunting. That’s why we’ve developed a suit of resources to help teachers and advisers support students who may be care leavers – they’re all available from our supporting care leavers toolkit. Here we’ve picked out the ten essentials for supporting people in care:
To access this in a downloadable pdf – along with more resources visit our supporting care leavers toolkit.
- Advocate, encourage and support the educational development of looked after children. Have aspirations for them from a very young age.
- Forward planning is extremely important. If a young person who is in care is thinking about higher education, make sure that an adviser knows this at their school. This is essential to ensure they get the appropriate funding and support as early as possible.
- Help them plan for the university or college that suits them best. a. Involve yourself with planning and preparation. b. Attend open days with them. Go to www.ucas.com/open-days for more information. c. Gather information about the support packages available. d. Encourage them to speak to the designated care leaver contact at each university or college.
- Find out if certain universities or colleges have special arrangements for care leavers. For example, some offer university accommodation over the holidays, others may give priority access to, or even a guaranteed place, in university accommodation. The Who Cares? Trust Handbook is a useful guide: www.thewhocarestrust.org.uk
- Familiarise yourself with the UCAS application process and application deadlines. List key dates so you know what needs to be done. You can find out more information at www.ucas.com/whentoapply
- Listen. Encourage them to talk about how they feel about moving on, starting afresh and aspects of university or college life.
- Encourage and support them to develop new friendships when they start university or college.
- Prepare them for independent living. Get them up to speed with self-care skills like cooking, cleaning and budgeting.
- Make sure that any financial support they receive from their local authority is confirmed in writing and that they have a copy of the document when they start university or college.
- Keep in touch. Make sure you find the time to regularly contact them to see how they are getting on once they have moved on
To access this in a downloadable pdf – along with more resources visit our supporting care leavers toolkit.
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