Houghton, Ann-Marie and Armstrong, Joanne Elisabeth and Holland, Natalie Jane (2017) Evaluation of the Cumbria and Lancashire Network for Collaborative Outreach (CLNCO). [Report]
CLNCO_Evaluation_Report_2017.pdf - Published Version
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Abstract
Forward from funders The Cumbria and Lancashire Collaborative Outreach Network (CLNCO) has been unique in bringing together partners from two regions under shared governance to raise awareness of the outreach available to support young people’s progression to higher education. An impartial central team has provided all schools and colleges across Cumbria and Lancashire with information about the activities and interventions offered by our partners to ensure all young people have the opportunity to access information, advice and guidance about their future options. Discussing requests from individual schools has been an important part of this process. CLNCO partners have further collaborated in delivering innovative new activity to address identified gaps in engagement. CLNCO has also been unique in its approach to evaluating the network’s impact. The evaluation has focused on the relationships between partners and the effectiveness of collaboration. Our thanks go to Dr Ann-Marie Houghton and her team from REAP (Researching Equity, Access and Participation) at Lancaster University for their methodical and thorough approach to working within the challenging timeframes of the project. This resulting report will be shared amongst CLNCO partners to support the continuation of strong provider relationships across Lancashire and Cumbria and sustain the legacy of CLNCO in effectively co-ordinating outreach provision. As CLNCO draws to a close, HEFCE has launched a new initiative, the National Collaborative Outreach Programme (NCOP) which will target specific areas in both counties and, like its predecessor, emphasise the value of inclusivity and collaboration. Its aim is to close the gap between expected and actual progression to meet the Government’s target of doubling the number of young people from widening participation backgrounds who enter higher education by 2020. We will use learning gained from CLNCO and this evaluation report to support our work under the new programme. Finally, we hope the findings presented here will provide useful insights for colleagues at a national level and support the country-wide sharing of best practice.