Rees Centre evaluation helps shape national policy for care-experienced young people

Dr Georgia Hyde-Dryden, Rees Senior Researcher and lead author of the evaluation, said: “As a researcher, it is rewarding to see evaluation findings emerging through collaboration with evaluation partners and stakeholders feeding into policy and practice.”

Commissioned by the Department for Education in September 2022, the Rees Centre and Cordis Bright evaluated the Pupil Premium Plus Post-16 programme, which provides funding through Virtual School Heads to support the education of looked-after children and care leavers aged 16–18.

The programme was initially launched as a pilot in 2021 with £3 million of funding across 30 local authorities before expanding to a further 28 authorities in 2022. It was rolled out nationally across all English local authorities in September 2023, with around £40 million invested by the Department for Education to date.

Published in March 2026, the evaluation found that the programme was widely valued by Virtual School Heads and partner organisations for helping to improve support for young people.

However, it also identified barriers to successful implementation, including uncertainty caused by annual funding allocations, related challenges recruiting and retaining staff, and variation in delivery across local authorities.

The research recommended considering funding levels and allocation to provide greater stability and strengthen implementation.

Shortly after the report was published, the Department for Education announced a three-year £41.5 million funding commitment to support the continued delivery of the post-16 Virtual School Head role, including £13.8 million through the Children, Families and Youth Grant.

At the time, FE Week linked the announcement to the findings of the Rees Centre and Cordis Bright evaluation, reporting that the research had shown how the programme was helping to extend support for care-experienced young people beyond the age of 16.

The evaluation has also been incorporated into the Department for Education’s policy evidence base. It is cited in the government’s April 2026 White Paper, Every Child Achieving and Thriving, in the section on the effective use of Pupil Premium funding and educational support for vulnerable children and young people.

These developments demonstrate how independent research can contribute to national policymaking, helping to strengthen support for care-experienced young people as they progress through post-16 education.