« Previous | Contents | Next »
Listen
A Different Class? Educational Attainment: the views and experiences of looked after young people
Breakdown of Participants
The young people who took part in the consultation
This section aims to give an overview of the young people who participated in the consultation exercise which formed the basis of this report. It should be noted that whilst the young people answered questions relating to their type of care placement and length of time in care, they were not asked about their reasons for coming into care, or family backgrounds. Similarly the young people were asked to report their current educational placement and not their educational histories. None of the young people were asked questions regarding their ethnicity or level of disability.
In total 180 questionnaires were returned from young people, however 10 were returned too late to be considered in the full breakdown that follows.
Table 1:
Age Range of Respondents
Age | No. of Young people | Age | No. of young people |
7 | 2 | 13 | 15 |
8 | 1 | 14 | 35 |
9 | 3 | 15 | 46 |
10 | 6 | 16 | 33 |
11 | 4 | 17 | 7 |
12 | 16 | 18 | 2 |
- 114 young people were aged 14-16 years old, representing 67% of respondents. The mean age for the group was14.1 years.
Table 2:
Breakdown of respondents by Type of Care Placement and Gender
Gender | Foster Care | Residential unit | Residential School | Secure unit | Care Leaver | Supported lodgings | Total |
Male | 12 | 50 | 23 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 95 |
Female | 18 | 43 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 75 |
Total | 30 | 93 | 28 | 9 | 9 | 1 | 170 |
- 95 young people were male, representing 56% of respondents.
The high level of response from young people in residential units is reflective of the contact Who Cares? Scotland has with young people in this setting and is not reflective of the spread of looked after and accommodated young people in Scotland.
Table 3:
Breakdown of Respondents by length of time in care
Length of Time in Care | No. of Young people | % of Total |
1-2 years | 66 | 39 |
2-5 years | 53 | 31 |
5 years+ | 46 | 27 |
No response | 5 | 3 |
- 66 young people reported that they had been in care for less than 2 years, representing 39% of respondents.
Table 4:
Local Authorities Represented by Young people in the Report
Local Authorities Represented in Report |
Aberdeen City | East Renfrewshire | North Lanarkshire |
Aberdeenshire | Edinburgh | Perth & Kinross |
Angus | Falkirk | Renfrewshire |
Argyll & Bute | Fife | Scottish Borders |
Clackmannanshire | Glasgow | South Ayrshire |
Dumfries & Galloway | Highland | South Lanarkshire |
Dundee | Inverclyde | Stirling |
East Ayrshire | Mid Lothian | West Dunbartonshire |
East Dumbartonshire | Moray | West Lothian |
East Lothian | North Ayrshire | |
All mainland local authorities are represented in the report, unfortunately due to time constraints, and the current distribution of Who Cares? Scotland Young Persons Workers it was not possible to consult with young people from Western Isles, Orkney or Shetland local authorities.
Table 5:
Breakdown of Current Educational Placements by Type of Care
Educational Placement | Res.
Unit | Res.
School | Foster Care | Secure Care | Care Leaver | Supported Lodgings |
Full time School | 50 | 22 | 24 | 9 | 2 | - |
Part Time School | 19 | 4 | - | - | - | - |
Not At School | 8 | - | 2 | - | 7 | - |
College Placement | 6 | 1 | 3 | - | - | 1 |
Tutor | 2 | - | - | - | - | - |
I.T. Centre | 1 | - | - | - | - | - |
Training Project | 3 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - |
Employment Based Training | 1 | - | - | - | - | - |
Alternative Education Project | 2 | - | - | - | - | - |
Awaiting School Placement | 1 | - | - | - | - | - |
Total | 93 | 28 | 30 | 9 | 9 | 1 |
- 107 of the young people who took part in the consultation were receiving full time education, representing 63% of the sample.
In total 40 young people reported that they were not attending school either on a full or part time basis. This group can be further divided into 2 sub groups; official school leavers and unofficial school leavers. The findings relating to these young people will be discussed later in the report.
« Previous | Contents | Next »