Schools are using different approaches to prevent/reduce persistent absence and exclusion, including internal alternative provision (IAP).
However, there is limited knowledge on those approaches and whether they can be effective. This study aims to address this gap by identifying the range of internal AP approaches used by secondary schools, the extent to which they can be classified into distinct models, and the features and prevalence of the models observed.
We are not currently looking for participants for this project. However, we will be looking to conduct interviews with senior leaders in 18 schools and 9 school case studies comprising interviews with pupils, parents/carers and other school staff, as part of the implementation process evaluation.
The study aims to build a picture of the approaches used by schools and their prevalence through interviews with education experts/stakeholders in the IAP/AP field, case-study school visits and a national survey of all mainstream secondary schools in England.
The scoping phase of this project involved expert interviews with practitioners and education policy advisors, school case-studies and a national survey of maintained publicly funded secondary schools in England. This took place between June 2022 to December 2023.
By participating in this study, we hope that practitioners, education policy advisors and politicians will be able to identify the most effective and prevalent internal alternative provision (AP) approaches. These could then be implemented, either on a individual, local, regional or even national basis.
Following an initial scoping phase, we are now carrying out an impact evaluation which runs from Spring 2024 to January 2026, with the evaluation findings and report to be published by Spring 2026.
We are not currently recruiting participants for this project.
If you would like any additional information or have any further questions, please contact the
research team at [email protected].
