Last year just 14 per cent of young people in care achieved 5 A*-C grade GCSEs, increasingly seen as the basic threshold for employability. Research carried out by A National Voice, an organisation run by and for care experienced young people, found that over three-quarters of leaving care advisers felt that young people were leaving care at too young an age and with inadequate preparation, and that poverty had a negative effect on their lives.
Ten young people looked after by the London Borough of Richmond, supported by staff from its Looked After Service, took part in a focus group to explore the major financial issues for looked-after young people.
This was one of four focus groups about young people's experience of money that fed into a national event Right on the Money, organised by the National Youth Agency earlier this year. This provided opportunities to explore how developing the financial capability of disadvantaged young people would help them achieve economic wellbeing, the least well developed of the Every Child Matters outcomes.
Key findings from the focus group included recognition of young people's determination and resourcefulness in managing their lives in difficult circumstances. It was clear that for many the quality of their lives depended to some extent on chance - whether the accommodation they moved into was in good condition; whether foster carers supported them or whether their support worker had the appropriate skills.
A report on the focus group that fed into a workshop at the conference is now available at www.nya.org.uk.
