Yesterday, the Scottish Government released its latest report on the education outcomes of ‘looked-after’ children. The decline in outcomes for Care Experienced pupils clearly shows that much more needs to be done to meet The Promise, and ensure that every Care Experienced young person is afforded the same opportunities as their peers.
The Scottish Government has reported that in the academic year 2009/10, 42.0% of school leavers moved on to a positive follow-up destination, compared to 72.4% in the academic year 2023/34 for ‘looked after young people’.
For MCR Pathways, we believe mentoring can make that vital difference to improving outcomes. An incredible 93.8% of care-experienced mentored young people, who attended 10 or more mentoring sessions in the academic year 2023/24, left school to go to college, university or employment/apprenticeship compared to the national figure of 63.4%. Our approach creates long lasting meaningful impacts. It builds strong sustainable foundations that enable long-term future success.
These figures are not a coincidence. This is the power of personalised relationship-based mentoring. Behind each trusted adult is a young person, who has the right to thrive. This is why MCR Pathways will not stop until everyone has someone. Until every young person who needs us has access to the support that they deserve.
Whilst highlighting the transformational impact of mentoring , we are incredibly conscious of the deeply harmful gap that remains. This report reminds us we all have so much more to do – a powerful reminder that our mission is more vital than ever.
Sharon McIntyre, CEO shared: “This publication strengthens our calls to continue championing personalised relationship-based mentoring as a core part of developing education, skills and future careers of Care Experienced people. Care Experienced young people should not face the barriers they do to realising their potential and future success. Mentoring support spans country-wide, ensuring that no young person is left behind.
“To date, we operate in over half of Scotland’s local authorities, and we are thrilled to be actively working with Centrestage in East Ayrshire and Forth Valley College to bring our proven model to new communities and alternative settings. MCR Pathways will do what it takes to reach every young person who can benefit from the power of a mentor.”
A more comprehensive breakdown of the newly released statistics and how they compare with those of mentored young people is to follow.
