Alternative provision

Alternative provision in Southend

Alternative provision (AP) is education outside school. It is arranged by local authorities or schools, for pupils who do not attend mainstream school for reasons such as:

  • school exclusion
  • behaviour issues
  • school refusal
  • special educational needs
  • access to vocational curriculum offers
  • short or long-term illness, mental health and emotional wellbeing.

Key points about alternative provision:

All pupils must:

  • receive full-time education provision in total, whether in one setting or more. Unless a medical or mental health condition makes full-time provision inappropriate
  • receive a good education, regardless of their circumstances or the setting

All schools have a duty to inform the Local Authority of:

  • any child who is accessing alternative provision and/or;
  • not in full-time education

In Southend, some alternative provision settings are Ofsted approved/registered and some are unregistered.

What does alternative provision look like?

Provision will be different from pupil to pupil. But there are common elements that alternative provision should aim to achieve:

  • good academic attainment equal to mainstream schools, particularly in English, maths and science (including IT). With appropriate accreditation and qualifications
  • the personal, social and academic needs of pupils are properly identified. And met to help them overcome any barriers to attainment
  • improved pupil motivation, self-confidence, attendance and engagement with education
  • clearly defined objectives. To include next steps following the placement such as reintegration into mainstream education, further education, training or employment

Schools:

  • remain responsible for reviewing progress, gaining the voice of the child and evidencing outcomes whilst the child is accessing alternative provision
  • must ensure the child has access to essential areas of the curriculum that may not be delivered by the alternative provider. This includes personal, social, health and economic education, including relationships and sex education

Registered providers

Provision name Type of need Age range Number of places
Southend YMCA Community School (free school) Pupils who have, by reason of illness, disability, social, emotional or mental health issues, require alternative educational arrangements 14 to 18 years 50
Victory Park Academy Social Emotional and Mental Health 5 to 16 years 85

The Southend YMCA Community School is an alternative provision Free School for pupils aged 14 to 18. Pupils are referred via commissioning schools. They can also be referred by external agencies including the Virtual School, special educational needs teams and other local authority agencies.

Victory Park Academy is an alternative provision academy. It provides full and part-time education for up to 85 students aged 5 to 16 who have experienced difficulties with their learning and behaviour in mainstream school.

Admission to a full time pathway for primary, Key Stage 3 or Key Stage 4 is for:

  • pupils who have been permanently excluded or;
  • are at the point of permanent exclusion, and where a move to Victory Park Academy is agreed by all concerned, including parents

Victory Park also offers alternative short stay pathways for pupils attending Southend schools who need some time out of mainstream settings due to social, emotional or mental health difficulties. These are usually for 6 or 12 weeks. They can be 2, 4 or 5 day placements for primary and 5 day placements for secondary. Pupils remain dual registered and must return to their home school at the end of the placement.

Unregistered providers

Many alternative providers chose not to register with Ofsted or the Department for Education, as it allows more flexibility/creativity with bespoke packages and individualised plans. But it also means they are not officially regulated or inspected.

In Southend, an officer has regular communication with unregistered providers. The officer undertakes annual quality assurance (QA) processes for health and safety within our statutory duties.

The providers listed have undertaken a QA and physical visits by the officer. Although these basic checks are in place, the individual commissioning service is expected to undertake their own checks and individual pupil risk assessments before starting a placement.

Parents can also independently commission unregistered providers and personally fund them. However, we would always recommend parents:

  • undertake their own due diligence with regards to safeguarding, safety and wellbeing needs of their child
  • ensure that the provision is meeting the child's educational targets and that the child continues to make progress

As already mentioned, these providers have undertaken the council QA process, but the council does not recommend or endorse any unregistered provision.

Advice and support

If parents need further advice when choosing and self-funding alternative provision, and carrying out safeguarding checks:

If a parent wishes to report a concern about a provision, contact the Inclusion Team at inclusion@southend.gov.uk

If a child attends a school, the decision to commission an unregistered alternative provision rests solely with the school in discussion with parents and carers.

Statutory guidance sets out the Government's expectations of local authorities and maintained schools who commission alternative provision and pupil referral units.