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Report authors: Neil Harrison, Judy Sebba, Marc Wigley, Rachael Pryor, Fay Blyth
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Published by University of Exeter and the National Association of Virtual School Heads
Research objective
This study by the University of Exeter, University of Oxford and the National Association of Virtual School Heads (NAVSH) set out to explore the effectiveness of virtual schools and how this could be improved.
Method
The researchers started by doing interviews with a range of experts including retired and former virtual school heads, directors of children’s services, designated teachers responsible for promoting the educational achievement of looked-after children, and NAVSH board members. They analysed data on local authorities and from NAVSH’s annual membership survey to explore factors associated with stronger outcomes for children in care. They then interviewed 25 virtual school heads about their perceptions of effectiveness, presenting their findings to the NAVSH board for a final “sense check”.
Key findings
The study found there were important differences in the ability of virtual schools to ensure young people had stable school attendance with many schools resisting the admission of children in care. The local availability of alternative provision and special school places as well as schools’ varying approaches to emotional and mental wellbeing were contributing factors.
The findings suggest management of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision for children in care is “unnecessarily complex”, leading to delays in securing school places especially in smaller local authority areas. Meanwhile, a lack of suitable care placements and pressures on social workers could lead to disruption and a “deprioritising” of education for children in care with rural areas facing particular challenges.
There was no evidence to suggest any particular model of virtual school was inherently more effective, but effectiveness was linked to differences in funding, the skills and experience of the virtual school head and their relationship with key decision-makers.
Implications for practice
Based on their findings the researchers drew up 10 principles of effectiveness for virtual schools linked to recommendations for local authorities, government and other key players such as Ofsted. They say the Department for Education should ensure all virtual school heads have predictable and longer-term funding and that schools and multi-academy trusts admit children in care promptly where this is the most appropriate placement. The researchers also call for improvements in SEND support for children in care and say Ofsted should increase its focus on the education of looked-after children in children’s services inspections. Other recommendations include the need to ensure social workers, foster carers and other children’s services professionals get training on the role of virtual schools and the importance of education for children in care.
Further reading
‘They are always in the top of our mind’: Designated Teachers’ Views on Supporting Care Experienced Children in England, Lynn De La Fosse, Sarah Parsons, Hanna Kovshoff, Children & Society, April 2023
Phase One Evaluation of the Virtual School Head’s Extension of Duties to Children with a Social Worker and the Post-16 Pupil Premium Plus Pilot, Department for Education, December 2022
The Role of the Virtual School in Supporting Improved Educational Outcomes for Children in Care, Judy Sebba and David Berridge, Oxford Review of Education, July 2019
