Coding skills for young ex-offenders

Somewhere in the mid 1990s, we lost our way. The education system largely ignored the explosive growth of computing and the internet, instead focusing on teaching students how to write Word documents. Instead of a nation of builders and entrepreneurs, we were content for our children to become also-rans on the technology stage.

Dr Tony Sewell has been appointed by the Secretary of State to be on the Youth Justices board. The body responsible for Youth Justice in England and Wales. The appointment has been the result of the work done on the Coding and Ex- offenders programme.

The Secretary of State for Justice, Michael Gove, appointed Dr Tony Sewell as a new member of the Youth Justice Board. Lord McNally, Chair of Youth Justice Board, said: "Tony has an outstanding track record in the education sector at both national and international level, and his pioneering work to raise the attainment of children and young people from disadvantaged backgrounds is exemplary. His passion for addressing educational discrimination has driven real change in the school system. I look forward to working with Tony in his role to provide challenge and support to the Board and in bringing his special experience to the issue of the over representation of black and ethnic young people in our criminal justice system."

The charity will now take on a more lobbying role as it looks at how Coding can influence the pathways of ex-offenders. This is an exciting position to have.

The government also want to put education at the heart of the experience of these young people. We are now coming to an end point in the programme but still need funds to enable us to do high level evaluation. We want to measure a range of skills

What is the study? The study will measure the impact of our (social programme) upon the social, emotional and cognitive development of students. Our hope is that the study will broaden understanding of the non-academic dividend in educational models and highlight where gaps in the actual impacts of different models on student development can be overcome.

What will the study involve? The study has been designed for minimal school disruption and time allocation. It involves 50% of young people completing a one hour online assessment. The assessments can be conducted within our own ICT suite under the supervision of an internal member of staff, supplied with a full briefing and instructions to run the session.

This proposal is a priority because we wish to develop and implement the assessment mechanism which would reveal the academic and aspirational baseline of disadvantaged students, including working class boys. Our activities, as part of this proposal, will give young ex-offenders a better assessment of where they are educationally to reveal their true level of ability. us the ability to measure the impact of our programme.