Youth Attainment and Transitions National Partnership

The Council of Australian Governments meeting on 2 July 2009 agreed to the National Partnership on Youth Attainment and Transitions (NP). It came into immediate effect and covers the period up to 31 December 2013.

The Partnership is a joint initiative of the Australian and State and Territory Governments and aims to increase participation of young people in education and training, increase attainment levels and improve successful transitions from school. It contains a package of elements, including:

• strengthened participation requirements to encourage young people aged 15-20 to be engaged in education or training as a first priority;
• lifting qualification levels with the aim of 90 per cent of young people nationally attaining a Year 12 or equivalent qualification by 2015 (Victoria’s target is 92.6%) with an accompanying education or training entitlement for young people aged 15-24; and
• support for successful transitions through the provision of youth career and transition programs.

Further information on the National Partnership on Youth Attainment and Transitions is available at the Commonwealth Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. For more information, see: National Partnership on Youth Attainment and Transitions

 

Funding

Victoria will receive approximately $135 million over four years from the Australian Government under the terms of the NP. Reward payments of approximately $25 million are also available to Victoria upon the achievement of attainment targets. 

This funding is on top of the significant resources and funding that the Victorian Government already invests in the youth transitions and support sector.

Initiatives

Participation requirement

The National Youth Participation Requirement requires young people to complete Year 10 and then participate full time in education, training or employment until age 17.

In Victoria, the Education Training and Reform Act has been amended to increase the minimum school leaving age from 16 to 17 years. It includes a general exemption from attending school if the young person has completed Year 10 and is leaving school to participate in employment and/or education and training at another organisation.

There are also changes to Youth Allowance and Family Tax Benefit making participation in education and training a precondition for these payments.

Education and training entitlement

As part of the NP, all states and territories are delivering an education and training entitlement for young people aged 15-24 including:

• young people aged 15-19 years will have an entitlement to an education or training place for any government-subsidised qualification, subject to admission requirements and course availability; and
• young people aged 20-24 will have an entitlement to an education or training place for any government-subsidised qualification which would result in the individual attaining a higher qualification, subject to admission requirements and course availability.

For more information about this education and training entitlement, see: The Victorian Training Guarantee

 

Youth career and transition programs

Under the NP, programs to support youth transitions will be delivered through four broad streams:

• Maximising Engagement, Attainment and Successful Transitions – focusing on multiple learning pathways, career development and mentoring;
• Youth Connections – case management and support for at risk young people to remain engaged in, or reconnect with, education and training. For further information regarding the Youth Connections Program, including program guidelines and a list of providers, please see Youth Connections
• School Business Community Partnership Brokers – networks to improve community and business engagement with schools; and
• National Career Development – including current national resources such as Job Guide and the myfuture website that will continue to be an Australian Government responsibility.

The Victorian Implementation Plan for the National Partnership on Youth Attainment and Transitions, agreed with the Australian Government, describes the programs to be delivered under each stream.

The Youth Connections and Partnership Brokers programs have been rolled out nationally, but with different requirements to reflect the individual circumstances of the various states and territories. In Victoria, both are delivered within existing Local Learning and Employment Network (LLEN) boundaries with the Partnership Broker program delivered by LLENs.

For further information about the youth career and transition program streams see Youth Career and Transition Programs