Young people across Leeds and West Yorkshire are facing a crisis in their education. In the last academic year (2008/09) young people in Leeds were excluded for a total of 13200 school days and a further 39 young people faced permanent exclusion. Young people falling through the education net due to their family circumstances, bullying, involvement in gang culture, domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse, bereavement and being in care.

Involve is committed to addressing this crisis, committed to working in partnership to ensure no child is left behind, but instead each young person is given the opportunity to learn, achieve and realise their potential.

Our programmes work holistically with each young person and aims to address the root causes of disaffection. Programmes such as the Pacific Institute’s Paths to Extreme Success are designed to raise the aspirations and harness the motivations of young people.

‘Involve offers opportunities to young people that would of otherwise faced permanent exclusion. The project gives the school a stop-gap opportunity to put together alternative programmes in preparation for reintegration.'
Elaine Senior, Inclusion Manager Rodillian School Specialist Performing Arts College, July 2009

‘At Involve our learners are able to learn and thrive in a smaller environment. Involve helps to unearth and deal with issues that may not have been addressed at school. Involve enables the school to help control their exclusions or avoid it becoming a permanent exclusion, gives the school time to plan for their future curriculum.’
Louise Yates, South Re-Inclusion Officer, July 2009

Involve receives a referral from a High school or other education establishment.

Introductory Meeting
Involve meets with the young person and the school/agency for an introductory meeting and interview. This is important to set out our expectations and the boundaries for behaviour and learning.

Programme Timetable
Involve offers the young person a 2/3 day placement depending on their particular needs.

Individual Learning Plan
The young person is inducted at the centre, completes an initial assessment and is assigned an Individual Learning Plan.

Programme Delivery
The young person enjoys a varied programme in small groups with a high ratio of staff to young people, with regular review meetings and tutorials.

Celebration & Reintergration
In consultation with the school a reintegration plan is developed ensuring the young person and the school are clear regarding the young persons next step. Following a celebration event the young person is successfully reintegrated back into mainstream school.