School leavers left out on the margins

THE Youthreach system, which offers second-chance education to early school leavers, is in crisis as most centres have at least one person is waiting for a place for every four students, their managers have claimed.

While almost 3,700 15- to 20-year-olds were catered for in the centres operated by city and county Vocational Educaiton Committees (VECs) last year, only 400 of the 1,000 additional places promised in the Towards 2016 social partnership deal have been provided since 2007.

But the National Association of Youthreach Co-ordinators (NAYC) reports that 90% of the 103 centres funded by the Department of Education are full and had waiting lists averaging 10 young people before Christmas. However, it has found that those lists have increased again since the start of 2010.