Budget 2015 approved $2.2 million over 4 years to conduct a small scale concept test of Year 9 Plus which will provide intensive wrap-around support to 80-100 most at risk students in the wider Wairoa, Gisborne and East Coast region. The work starts in term one this year and continues until the selected students have either left or finished school.
The Wairoa, Gisborne, East Coast region has a high number of at risk young people combined with comparatively low levels of retention and Level 2 qualification attainment.
While the region shares similar achievement with other regions, the percentage of students retained in education at 17 is consistently lower than the national average. Only 76% of students were retained in education at age 17 compared to 82.6% nationally.
We will contract a community based provider to deliver the service. They will appoint Champions who will remove barriers and address issues both inside and outside the education system to help their students stay in school and achieve formal qualifications.
Year 9 Plus was developed after research found that achieving better outcomes for young people at risk requires a holistic approach to address all the factors affecting a student’s participation and achievement in education. This includes providing continuous support to help students with changing circumstances over the time they are at school.
This work will test how well we can identify the young people most at risk and how effective the intensive wrap-around and ongoing support is in helping them.