Alternative on-line education works in Wigan
Although no-one knows the exact number, the terrible truth is that somewhere around 100,000 children of school going age are not in school. Many of these children are excluded from school and end up at home or in care. Without the proper support and guidance and without an education you don’t need a crystal ball to realise many will end up in prison. The simple truth is that if government fails to help them when they are still at school, the long term damage of disaffected and disengaged vulnerable children means the cost to society rapidly escalates. There is a domino effect that impacts on policing, prison services, social services, housing and most importantly healthcare.
Wigan on-Line or WOL is a small education project run by Rob Jones and his team, who work directly with Local PRU manager Steve Rule to provide an alternate education service where school is no longer a viable option. Using an Internet connection to remain engaged with excluded children is a very simplistic overview. Wigan’s small dedicated team make regular home visits, provide support and education on-line around the clock and encourage children and their parents/guardians to engage with other local services. They provide opportunities for work placement and encouraging attendance to drop-in sessions where children and families with similar problems can realise they are not alone and gain greater overall support.
Wigan on-line works. Last year only 4 out of 58 children under WOL’s care did not move in to employment or further education. That’s a 90% positive outcome.
My company is proud to be the technical partner of Wigan on-line. We focus on delivering internet services to their local cohort. Children may be enrolled for only a few months or much longer. Numbers vary throughout the school year. Providing new fixed line internet or Mobile broadband quickly and efficiently is key. We manage 10 - 100 internet connections in a single cohort on a single monthly bill. In addition we also must ensure the right level of security. Children are vulnerable. Our product is the result of nine years of partnering WOL and other similar specialist education services to local government authorities, schools and Pupil Referral Units.<
As the spot light of financial cuts sweeps back and forth across Local Government with all its complex array of services it is important we support efforts by WOL and others. Traveling to Wigan from Brighton by car is not one I would normally undertake without good reason. Yesterday’s trip begun with me rolling out of bed by 4am and returning back home around 8.30pm. Was it worth it? Yes, absolutely.
Since the New Year Rob Jones and Steve Rule at Wigan have worked with myself and my Business Partner Aidan Bowen to put together this meeting. A short presentation by Wigan and ourselves to 5 other local authorities who care about the same issues we do.
How nice it was to meet and share our ideas and concerns with such a nice bunch of people. I learned a great deal about how best we can support WOL and other interested authorities who might benefit from Wigan’s experience.
I look forward to working with more closely with these inspirational people who do such important work. Our Internet services are an integral component that simply ensure they remain able to focus their efforts and achieve the results the current economy demand.
Head teachers and educators in the UK work to annual budget constraints of around £4,500 per child (AWPU, Average Weighted Pupil Unit). That’s the amount of money available to schools for each child on the schools register. Students identified as ‘special needs’ cost schools more. Students attending PRUs cost Local Authorities considerably more. The overall cost of a failing child is almost unmeasurable.
I believe strongly the WOL style model delivers exceptional value for money. To find out more please do get in touch. You can email me: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
John Parvin
