TEENAGERS in Knowsley, Liverpool, will be able to pick and mix their courses and subjects by taking them at different schools and colleges in the borough.
It is hoped the innovative approach for 14 to 19-year-olds will improve exam results and encourage more young people to stay in education and training.
The traditional break at 16 will disappear as students follow a planned progression from 14 to 19. Up to 16 students will follow a full-time curriculum, but not necessarily in their own school.
While many will continue to study GCSEs in their own school, and all will spend at least 50 per cent of their time there, others will attend courses at a new vocational skills centre, specialist schools or in the workplace.
Steve Munby, Knowsley’s director of education, said: “We need to raise achievement significantly and we believe we can do that with a range of strategies.”
The borough is at the bottom of the league table: 28 per cent of pupils get at least five good GCSE grades.
The four strands of the scheme include an enhanced curriculum with option choices, a new skills centre offering recognised vocational qualifications and an on-line learning site. All students should also have access to guidance, mentoring and personal development.
Knowsley has received a government grant of pound;500,000 to develop the 14 to 19 collegiate which will be launched in September. However, the timetabling needs to be sorted out as do the logistics of large numbers of students travelling around the borough during the school day.
Ensuring the scheme is properly funded is another issue. Headteachers have worked closely in setting up the scheme and are backing the new initiative. Mary Belchem, head of Knowsley Hey school, described it as “an exciting idea”.
A Green Paper on the 14 to 19 curriculum is due next month.
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