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ANNEX G: List of Consultation Questions
Thank you for taking the time to contribute to the consultation on 16+ Learning Choices: First Steps and Financial Support.
You do not need to answer all of the questions.
All responses will be considered.
Activity Agreements
1. How do we ensure that the learning and support that young people engage in is of sufficiently high quality?
2. Please give your views on how a balance many be struck between flexibility and accreditation and what approach/structures should be adopted to ensure that this is the case.
3. How could we develop a coherent measure of success for organisations engaged in this type of activity with young people?
4. Which types of existing activity should we include in our development of an Activity Agreement approach? Please comment on the proposal to include (a) community learning and development opportunities and (b) volunteering opportunities.
5. Do you think there are any important subcategories or distinctions to be made?
6. Do you think there are any other learning options or opportunities for personal and social development which should be available to young people that have not been discussed above? What are they?
7. Would some young people benefit from a "broker" to negotiate the right opportunities for them? Should that broker be able to commission services focused on individual young people? Please explain your answer.
8. Do you think that commissioning services on behalf of individual young people would assist in enabling access to a range of options? Would there be any constraints for providers in responding to this model of commissioning?
9. Do you have any views on how that might operate in Scotland?
10. Do you think this more strategic commissioning role would add value?
11. How might this operate?
12. Do you have any further comments on the type of activity which might qualify for Activity Agreements or how such a programme might operate?
13. Given the particular needs of the young people who would be involved in activity agreements, how might the scheme be most effectively administrated?
Financial Support
14. What is your view on the impact of the EMA scheme overall? (Please comment on the scheme's impact upon post-16 participation, retention and achievement rates as well as any effects the scheme might have had upon behaviour, attendance and attitude of students).
15. In your opinion, does the degree of impact vary according to the level of payment ( i.e. £30, £20, £10)?
16. How could EMA be targeted more effectively?
17. Are the current conditions attached to the weekly payment appropriate ( i.e. based on 100% attendance)? (If yes, please explain your answer. if no, please suggest ways in which this should be revised.)
18. What is the current impact of the bonus payment? Is this current amount appropriate? Please provide an explanation for your answer.
19. Please give your views on the proposal to align income assessment for parity among FE students.
20. How effective is the learning agreement system?
21. Please comment on the proposal to extend the system of learning agreements to other forms of learning or training.
22. Please comment on any specific issues you think may arise in relation to the school or college sectors as a result of these proposals.
23. Please give your opinion on the proposal to remove the lower payments from the scheme ( i.e. £10, £20) and to retain £30 payments. What impact do you think this would have?
24. If we remove the £10 and £20 payments, do you think £30 is still appropriate?
25. In your opinion, should children living in the same household who are in full time education be considered in the income assessment for EMA?
26. What is your opinion on how the EMA is currently delivered?
27. Do you think the EMA should continue to be delivered in the same way, so that it benefits from local input, or should delivery be centralised so that it is more consistent across the country?
28. Does the current higher training allowance of £55 per week skew the educational choices of individuals?
29. What is your opinion of the proposal to allow those on GRfW to receive EMA?
30. What impact do you think the extension of EMA to the GRfW would have on the programme? What about the impact on young people involved in ad hoc Life Skills provision?
i. Do you think there is a continuing need for Young Person's Bridging Allowance?
ii. What impact do you think there would be from removing it?
iii. In what circumstances do you think a young person should access YPBA instead of other financial support?
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