DCSF RESEARCH CONFERENCE Evaluation of Virtual School Heads for Looked After Children

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DCSF RESEARCH CONFERENCEEvaluation of Virtual
School Heads for Looked After Children

• Michael Allured
• Department for Children, Schools and Families
• Children in Care Division
• Education, health and wellbeing team
• David Berridge
• University of Bristol
• School for Policy Studies

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1 Where does the concept of the Virtual School
Head come from?

• Grew out of
• an increasing focus by Government from 1998
  onwards on the importance of improving education
  outcomes for looked after children.
• A bottom up approach model from one or two local
  authorities who wanted to track their looked
  after childrens attainment as if they were in a
  single school
• A senior educationalist championing the education
  of looked after children was one way of
  demonstrating compliance with the LA duty to
  promote educational achievement of looked after
  children
• A Care Matters Green Paper commitment to pilot
  the model and identify its strongest features
  with a view to national roll-out

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• Berridge, D., Henry, L., Jackson, S. and Turney,
  D. (2009)
• Looked After and Learning Evaluation of the
  Virtual School Head Pilot. Research Report
  DCSF-RR144. London DCSF.

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3 Research and the policy process

• Jowell (2003)
• - value of pilots undertaken in a spirit of
  experimentation
• - independence of pilots is important
• - multiple methods should be considered.
• Burton (2006) Theorising the policy process
• - The Stages model
• - Advocacy coalition framework
• - The Argumentative turn

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4 Pawson and Tilley (1996) Realistic Evaluation

• Limitations of traditional scientific approach
• Random allocation not always possible
• Not just what works but what works for whom in
  what circumstances
• Causal mechanisms difficult to untangle
• Awareness of the context in which an intervention
  is delivered. Importance of local conditions.

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5 Research/evaluation of pilots with government
departments

• Timescales
• Baseline information
• Anonymity? Research ethics
• Nature of role/independence
• Whether or not a Pilot continues or fine-tuning?
  Types of data to inform these decisions
• Analysts or researchers?
• Positive experience with Virtual School Heads
  (VSH) study

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6 Evaluation - objectives

• 11 pilot authorities chosen by DCSF. Pilots ran
  for two years 2007-09. Research occupied nine
  months at final stage of the pilots. To address
  low educational attainment of looked after
  children.
• map the range of activities undertaken by the
  VSHs
• examine professionals and childrens awareness
  and experiences of the VSH
• investigate the educational outcomes for looked
  after children and the influences on them and
• identify examples of good practice.

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7 Methods

• Some data from all 11 also more intensive
  sub-group of 5
• official educational outcome indicator statistics
  published by DCSF
• progress reports for the first year of the pilots
  which had been submitted by the VSHs (11)
• background questionnaires for VSHs (11)
• semi-structured interviews with VSHs (11) and
  directors of childrens services or their senior
  representative (5)
• group- or individual interviews with social
  workers (39)
• web surveys of young people (7-16 yrs) (31),
  foster and residential carers (25), designated
  teachers (21) and social workers (10)
• involvement in developing methodology
• eclectic approach. Cautious with conclusions.
  Causality.

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8 Findings 1

• Over period of the pilot, the 11 authorities
  performed well compared to national average and
  most improved GCSE results.
• VSHs appointed were senior educationists but
  often with some social work/special ed experience
• Several appointed part-time unusual for school
  heads
• VSHs appointed at different levels of seniority
• Key role (with their teams) forging successful
  relationships with local school heads advocate
  for children re exclusions/extra support etc
• VSHs backgrounds and structural position
  influenced this.

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9 Findings 2

• VSHs worked in different ways. Mainly strategic
• Numerous local initiatives eg innovative
  governors models dedicated phone lines for help
  with homework emphasis on the arts etc
• Social workers often lacked confidence in school
  issues. Welcomed role of VSH
• Children bemused by the title VSH. Mainly made
  educational progress over the duration of the
  pilots but this is a wider finding too.
• Social workers and children who responded very
  positive about individual tutoring. Some
  communication issues.

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10 Conclusions

• VSHs had successfully raised the profile of LACs
  education locally. Therefore a valuable role.
  Champion
• Causality complex. Many national initiatives on
  this issue
• Appropriateness of methods?
• The 11 had made better progress nationally as a
  group. Secondary statistics/cohorts.
• Working at the heart of complex interprofessional
  issues
• Title Virtual School Head. (Not a school)
• Is the school analogy helpful? External and
  internal implications
• Some confusion with role of pre-existing Looked
  After Children Education Support Teams (LACES).
  Suggested integration

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11 References

• Burton, P (2006) Modernising the policy
  process, Policy Studies, 27, 3, 173-196.
• Jowell, R. (2003) Trying it Out The Role of
  Pilots in Policy Making. London Cabinet Office.
  
• Pawson, R. and Tilley, N. (1996) Realistic
  Evaluation. London Sage.

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12 Implications for DCSF policy

• Maximising the impact of the role by reinforcing
  to local authorities the key messages which have
  come from the evaluation. These are
• The VSH had an impact on raising awareness about
  the educational needs of looked after children
• The VSH model can provide a structured focus and
  strategic direction for how a local authority
  promotes the education of looked after children
• Evidence suggests that that there is a
  relationship between the VSH model and
  educational outcomes for looked after children

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13 Some on-going challenges

• Data management, particularly in relation to
  out-of-authority placements
• Broadening the understanding among social workers
  about the importance of education
• The local authority interface with schools
• The relationship of the virtual school with the
  dedicated education of looked after children team
• Challenge of deciding what is strategic and what
  is operational

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14 Our vision for the future

• Every local authority has a senior manager,
  whether or not called a virtual school head who
  takes lead responsibility for
• Monitoring the attainment of pupils as if they
  were in a single school
• Rigorously tracking and monitoring data
• Ensuring that every school has the information it
  needs
• Making sure there is a personal education plan
  for the child and one-to-one support
• Promoting a focus on educational attainment of
  looked after children across the authority
• Working with others to improve behaviour and
  attendance
• Maximising placement and school stability

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15 The on-going challenge of implementation -
What we need to do together

• Its all about changing the behaviour of well
  intentioned people including practitioners,
  providers, community stakeholders, policy makers
  and funders
• National Implementation Research Network (NIRN)

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16 The implementation gap

• It is one thing to say with the prophet Amos,
  Let justice roll down like mighty waters, and
  quite another to work out the irrigation system.
  
• William Sloane Coffin
• Social
  activist and clergyman

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18 The implementation gap solved?

• The VSH with the right level of seniority can
  make a difference and make things happen by
• Having access to and influencing the DCS and lead
  members
• Being the grit in the oyster who doesnt let
  anyone forget about the educational needs of
  looked after children
• Building a virtual team (a virtual governing
  body) made up of colleagues across the authority
  on whose budgets s/he can draw

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19 Supported by

• Personalisation Personal Education Allowances,
  Designated Teacher, fewer school moves.
• Mainstreaming within broader programmes, e.g.
  Making Good Progress roll-out
• New statutory guidance on the role and
  responsibilities of the designated teacher to sit
  alongside regulations

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20 Supported by

• School Standards Advisers guidance for primary
  and secondary schools
• Revised National Minimum Standards, care planning
  regulations and guidance, Children Act 1989
  Guidance, revised education of looked after
  children statutory guidance
• National Strategies
• New OfSTED inspection framework

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21 OfSTED inspections of local authority looked
after children services

• Will focus on, among other things
• outcomes achieved
• access to and attendance at suitable schools
• the quality of care planning and review and
  support, including in relation to PEPs
• effectiveness of corporate parenting approaches
• Inspections on LAC subject to limiting judgements
• Overall effectiveness likely to be inadequate if
  any outcome judgement inadequate
• Overall effectiveness unlikely to be good if
  enjoying and achieving are not judged good
• Enjoying achieving not likely to be good if LAC
  are not making at least good educational progress

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22 The VSH role is an integral part of the whole
wider implementation of Care Matters

• Renewed focus on corporate parenting led by DCS
  and Lead Member
• Children and Young Peoples plans set out how
  childrens trust arrangements address needs of
  looked after children and care leavers
• Local authorities have a Children in Care Council
  where every looked after child has the
  opportunity to air their views
• Strengthened role of IROs
• Stability of placements
• Supporting education and training of care leavers
  and the transition to adulthood
• Revised statutory guidance on the duty local
  authorities have to promote the educational
  achievement of looked after children

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23 Embedding the learning

• Sharing effective practice through
• the nine regional Government Offices who support
  Virtual School Head networks
• A Virtual School Head newsletter
• Virtual School Head toolkit
• Continuing to build on the VSH pilots and
  evaluation findings to identify and embed the
  most powerful aspects of the VSH model that work
• VSH isnt the total answer to narrowing the gap
  in attainment between looked after children and
  their peers but its a big part of the answer.