The Raising Expectations program encourages young people with an out of home care experience to take up post-secondary study and to recognise that they have the right to the best possible educational opportunities, just like their peers who haven’t been in care.
The program is designed to increase access to Vocational Education and Training (VET) and Higher Education (HE). Raising Expectations provides integrated and consistent support to care experienced young people, to assist them in their successful transition from care into post-secondary education and to achieve the educational outcomes they aspire to.
Raising Expectations is coordinated by the Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare (the Centre), Victoria’s peak body for child and family services. The program was established in collaboration with founding university partners Federation University Australia (a dual sector university), and Swinburne University of Technology (also a dual sector university) and La Trobe University. These universities, in partnership with the Centre, support out-of-home care leavers to participate in VET and HE.
The Raising Expectations program was established by the Centre in response to research that showed the poor educational outcomes experienced by many young people with a care experience in Victoria. At that time, through no fault of their own, few care leavers participated in VET and HE compared to other young people aged 24 years and under. This is due to a range of factors, including personal and family circumstances, financial disadvantage, lack of safe and stable accommodation and challenges with mental health or wellbeing. Research also highlights that young people in care were not being prepared for further study or given the same encouragement to continue their study as other young people. Addressing this issue is a key priority of the Raising Expectations program.
Raising Expectations supports care experienced people who want to study in several ways. The program links to tuition fee-waivers for select VET courses, lets care experienced people and carers know about dedicated on-campus services, builds confidence and supports VET and HE trainers, teachers and lecturers to provide more integrated and consistent support.
The Centre hosts a number of networks aimed at assisting care experienced students, delivers workshops and webinars, coordinates advocacy campaigns, and organises events to raise awareness about VET and HE opportunities for care leavers. Additionally, the Centre develops resources for care experienced young people, carers and the out-of-home care workforce.
Raising Expectations’ university and TAFE partners – Federation University Australia, La Trobe University and Swinburne University of Technology – support the program by assisting students with access to on-campus support services, providing scholarships and bursary opportunities, and contributing to the growing evidence base of what works to support care experienced students. The university and TAFE partners also provide dedicated student support workers who can advocate and provide tailored support to support student learning and performance in VET and HE.
For further information please visit the Raising Expectations .
Link to strategic priorities
The Department of Education and Training’s (the department) vision is to ensure that all Victorians have equitable access to quality education and training. The department strives to build an education system that produces excellence, reduces the impact of disadvantage and improves outcomes for children and young people in every community, regardless of background, circumstance or postcode.
Central to breaking the link between disadvantage and poor educational outcomes is ensuring that young learners at risk of poor learning outcomes are supported to engage in education and reach their potential for improved life opportunities. The department’s Youth Access Initiative tackles disadvantage by addressing the training, learning, support and other essential service
needs of disadvantaged and high-needs young people who may otherwise slip through the cracks.
Accessing the Raising Expectations Program
Who is eligible for the Raising Expectations Program?
Raising Expectations aims to increase the number of care experienced young people participating in VET and HE. However, any person with a care experience is eligible to access support through the program. This includes those young people who have spent time or are currently in Kinship Care, Foster Care and Residential Care placements.
Who is eligible for the Skills First Program?
Care leavers can access over 800 fee-free TAFE courses via the Youth Access Initiative to obtain a standalone VET qualification or credits towards pathways in various HE courses.
To be eligible for a tuition fee-waiver via the Youth Access Initiative, young people must meet the following criteria:
- meet eligibility criteria applying to government subsidised training under Skills First; and
- are aged 24 years or under; and
- have been or are currently on a Child Protection Order or a Youth Justice Order (but are not currently in custody); or
- are a resident of an Education First Youth Foyer
- Broadmeadows - Kangan Institute (TAFE)
- Lilydale - Box Hill Institute of TAFE
- Glen Waverley - Holmesglen Institute of TAFE
- Shepparton - Goulburn Ovens Institute of TAFE
- Warrnambool - South-West TAFE
PROGRAM PATHWAYS
What does the program provide to care experienced learners
Under the Raising Expectations program, TAFEs and dual sector university partners provide supports and services to meet the needs of care experienced learners in metropolitan and regional areas. This includes support for:
- Scholarship and bursary applications;
- Accessing financial allowances and similar supports;
- Post-secondary education enrolments;
- Referrals to personal and academic support; and
- Peer support and mentoring
How does the program improve education and training opportunities for care experienced learners
Under the Raising Expectations program, TAFE and dual sector university partners provide critical localised pathways and support services to meet program needs in metropolitan and regional areas. This includes:
- Identifying and strengthening connections with student support services across campuses;
- Supporting TAFE and University providers to implement support programs, such as Peer Mentoring;
- Strengthening outreach supports and services to schools including through school partnership/tertiary aspiration programs in secondary or flexible learning schools;
- Increasing availability of, and access to, financial supports such as bursaries, scholarships and allowances;
- Advocating for increased availability and access to accommodation;
- Establishing participation data collection for VET and HE students to inform advocacy and to make sure care experienced students are not lost in the system;
- Monitoring Year 12 VTAC/SEAS applications and offering eligible students bursaries, scholarships and linkage to other services;
- Making referrals to the Youth Access Initiative; and
- Establishing referral processes and pathways through similar programs such as the Department’s Reconnect and community sector out-of-home care leaving services
What training and courses are care leavers eligible to do
Care leavers are eligible for over eight hundred (800) subsidised VET courses under the Youth Access Initiative delivered by approved Training Providers. These include training in:
- Certificates (I – V);
- Diploma and Advanced Diploma courses;
- The Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE); and
- The Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL)
Eligible care leavers may use credit from the above courses towards further studies in HE (e.g. undergraduate or postgraduate studies).
Tuition fee-waivers are not available for undergraduate or postgraduate HE courses. However, for those undertaking study in HE, access to support services, mentoring and financial assistance (bursaries, scholarships and allowances) remain available to young care experienced students leavers under the Raising Expectations program.
How can eligible participants access a tuition fee-waiver
Eligible participants applying for a tuition fee-waiver must complete a Youth Access Initiative Referral Form. The Referral Form must be completed by the following parties:
The eligible young person applying for a tuition fee-waiver; and
- A representative from an authorised Referral Agency; or
- An Authorised Officer; and
- A representative from a Skills First contracted Training Provider
Referral Agency
A Referral Agency is an organisation in Victoria that receives funding from the Victorian Government or the Commonwealth Government to provide services to children, young people and/or families. Any organisations that fall under these criteria can act as a Referral Agency for the Youth Access Initiative.
Authorised Officers
Authorised Officers can sign-off on the eligibility of a young person applying for the Youth Access Initiative. Authorised Officers may include post-care support staff, Education First Youth Foyer authorised staff, Youth Justice case managers, central Department of Justice and Community Safety (DJCS) authorised staff, and Parkville College.
Training Providers
Skills First contracted Training Providers are approved to offer tuition fee-waivers under the Youth Access Initiative. Training Providers may be TAFEs, dual sector universities or Learn Local (LL) organisations. Training Providers must NOT charge eligible young people any tuition fees for government subsidised accredited training under the Raising Expectations program.
Reporting
Information for the peak body
The Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare (the Centre) is responsible for annually reporting participation numbers of young people in and leaving out-of-home care accessing TAFE and dual sector university courses to the Department of Education and Training (the department).
Information for referral agencies
Referral Agencies that have signed-off on eligibility for a care leaver may be subject to audit conducted by the department Referral Agencies are therefore required to retain a copy of all care leaver applicants’ Referral Forms for audit purposes.
Information for training providers
Training Providers that have signed-off on eligibility for a care leaver may be subject to audit conducted by the department. Training Providers are therefore required to retain the ORIGINAL copy of the Referral Form and return a copy to the Referral Agency or Authorised Officer (where relevant).
Training Providers will receive a contribution from the department for the tuition fee-waiver under the Youth Access Initiative.
Training Providers must report all training activities delivered to the eligible young person under the Youth Access Initiative in accordance with reporting requirements specified in the Victorian VET Student Statistical Collection Guidelines, using the Fee Exemption/Concession Type Identifier ‘E’.
Outcomes Achieved
When Raising Expectations was first implemented, forty-three (43) care leavers were enrolled at the three partnering dual sector universities – Federation University, La Trobe University and Swinburne University of Technology. More recent figures show that almost seven hundred (700) care leavers were enrolled across the three dual sector universities in 2021 (see recent figures below).
Care Leaver Student Enrolment (updated Feb 2022)
When Raising Expectations commenced, there were 43 care experienced students identified. Currently there are around 700 enrolled in TAFE and university partners. Despite the ongoing impact of COVID-19 on participation in VET and HE in 2021, the above data indicates that care leaver student engagement in TAFE and university continues to grow.
Funding
The department has provided $1.05 million in funding to the Centre to manage and deliver the Raising Expectations program. These funds were committed for the period of June 2019 until December 2022.
In 2022, the department committed an additional $105,000 one-off payment to the Centre to support the expansion of Raising Expectations across Victorian TAFEs. This expansion involved offering eligible care leavers, aged 24 and under, access to over eight hundred (800) fee-free TAFE courses under the Skill First Youth Access Initiative.
Resources
Raising Expectations program .
Raising Expectations – Program .
Raising Expectations program evaluation – Social Return on Investment Analysis by .
Raising Expectations student .
Victorian VET Student Statistical Collection Guidelines .
Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare – Raising .
Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare – Education .
Contact
Department of Education and Training (DET)
learner.pathways@education.vic.gov.au
Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare
Phone: (03) 9614 1577
Email: admin@cfecfw.asn.au
Raising Expectations
Email: Browser inquiry
Phone: 03 9094 3523
Facebook:
Twitter:
Reviewed 20 July 2022