How we are improving ..Training opportunities for care leavers in Sunderland

Council: Sunderland City Council

Performance: The percentage of former care leavers aged 19 who are in education, employment or training

2004 England 55.4% Sunderland 51.5%

2005 England 59.1% Sunderland 48.6%

2006 England 63.4% Sunderland 56.8%

2007 England 63% Sunderland 61.5%

2008 England 64.9% Sunderland 75%

In the last four years Sunderland has developed a new strategy to improve education and training opportunities for young care leavers. This focus has led to improvements in the percentage of 19-year-old care leavers who are managing to sustain education, employment and training.

One of the key steps to this success was the creation of the Unlocking Potential team, which works with the leaving care service to guide care leavers into education, training and employment.

Simone Common, young people's services strategic manager at the authority, says: "The team work with the young people to create individual plans focusing on soft skills, such as confidence building, before looking at what employment and training they are interested in."

Looked-after children are tracked from Year 11 and are supported in exploring what they want to do after finishing school. For those who stop participating in education after 16, intensive support is offered and they are expected to attend a weekly job club to review their situation.

But Common is keen to see children targeted earlier. She says: "We are lucky to have received money from the Working Neighbourhood Fund and with this we will be ensuring we pick up young people early from Year 10 and below."

As evidence of this commitment, the team has started to run the Teenagers to Work scheme, which provides a range of summer work experience placements to care leavers and looked-after children.