1 to 1 Life-Coaching for Young People at Risk of Becoming NEET
In partnership with Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole Council (BCP)
(NEET is Not in Employment, Education or Training)
Every young person deserves a future they can feel excited about. Our NEET Prevention Programme pairs trained life-coaches with students in Years 10 and 11 who are at risk of leaving school without education, employment or training. By intervening early and walking beside each learner all the way into post-16 placements, we turn “at-risk” into “on-track.”
Why Choose us Over Large Mainstream Providers
- Local insight & Relationships
Our coaches live and work solely within Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole. They know the schools, youth clubs,, employer networks and crucially, the “gatekeepers” who influence each young person’s life (pastoral leads, social-work teams, CAMHS nurses). This local social capital lets us solve micro-barriers, preventing small issues from snowballing into NEET status.
- Relational depth, not contractual volume.
Our charity caps caseloads at 15 per coach, allowing weekly face-to-face sessions and on-demand messaging. This high-trust relationship generates the mind set change required for the hardest-to-reach cohort, not just those already “work-ready.” Student feedback (2024 exit survey) rated “feeling listened to” at 4.8/5, versus 3.9 reported in DfE’s national survey of mainstream traineeship providers.
- Mission-driven Flexibility
With a flat governance structure, we can adapt the intervention in real time—adding extra summer sessions, attending a multi-agency meeting, or accompanying a learner to a mental-health appointment – without waiting for contract variations. Commissioners get a partner who reacts to emerging need rather than sticking rigidly to a national delivery template.
Step | What Happens | Why It Matters |
1. Referral | BCP social workers or school inclusion staff complete a quick online form. | Ensures the right students—those disengaging from school, at risk of exclusion, care-experienced —are prioritised. |
2. First Visit | Within seven days, a coach meets the young person somewhere they feel safe—home, school, café or youth club. | Removes anxiety, starts the relationship on the student’s terms. Research shows early rapport is the strongest predictor of coaching success. |
3. Goal-Setting Session | Using simple coaching tools (GROW model, solution-focused questioning) the coach helps the student define one inspiring long-term goal and three next-step actions. | Goals framed by the young person increase motivation by up to 42 % compared with adult-imposed targets (Prince’s Trust 2024). |
4. Ongoing Coaching | Weekly or fortnightly meet-ups plus WhatsApp check-ins: celebrating wins, troubleshooting setbacks, building self-belief. Average programme length: 20 weeks. | Consistency creates behavioural change; regular contact cuts dropout risk during summer by 55 %. |
5. Progression Planning | Together we explore routes into college courses, apprenticeships, supported internships or part-time work with training. Coaches broker taster days and work-experience placements through our local employer network. | Translates confidence into concrete destinations so no young person finishes Year 11 without a plan. |
6. Transition Support | Coaching continues through the summer and into the first half-term of the new placement. | Nationally, 1 in 5 NEET-prone students abandon FE by October. Our “stickability” support keeps XX % enrolled after six months. |
Coaches with Lived Experience
Many of our practitioners have faced the same barriers, that our learners confront. Empathy isn’t taught; it’s shared. “They get me” is the feedback we hear most often.
Person-Centred & Informal
No clipboards, no judgement. We use motivational interviewing, and creative activities to unlock conversation. When a young person feels heard, attendance climbs, resilience builds and outcomes improve.
Seamless Pathways Beyond Coaching
Our charity also delivers NOCN accredited training courses and a Supported Employment Service. Students can step straight into these offers when the time is right, maintaining momentum.
We prioritise Year 10–11 pupils in Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole who are displaying one or more NEET-risk indicators: persistent absenteeism (<90 %), fixed-term exclusions, EHCP or SEN support, care-experienced status, young carer duties, involvement with Early Help or Youth Justice, or “unknown” post-16 intended destination. If a borderline case emerges, we discuss it with the referring professional within 48 hours.
A named coach contacts the pupil (and parent/carer where appropriate) within three working days. The first face-to-face session is booked for within seven calendar days—so momentum isn’t lost.
All staff hold enhanced DBS certificates renewed every three years, complete annual KCSIE and Prevent training, and follow our Safeguarding Policy aligned to BCP’s Thresholds & Pathways guidance. We use secure cloud case-management software (UK-hosted, ISO 27001) and share only agreed progress notes with the referrer via secure e-mail.
KPIs include (a) destination secured by 31st August (education, apprenticeship, employment with training), (b) retention at six-month checkpoint, and (c) wellbeing shift on the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale.
Termly dashboards show cohort-level data, plus anonymised case studies that illustrate qualitative change.
Coaches operate a three-step re-engagement protocol: same-day text reminder, 24-hour phone follow-up, and—if no contact—home or school visit within 72 hours. Where barriers are structural (e.g., transport costs, caring duties), we draw on hardship funds or liaise with social care teams to remove obstacles.
We sit on the BCP NEET Prevention Network and maintain MOUs with local colleges, training providers and the Dorset Careers Hub. Coaches broker taster days, accompany students to interviews, and share transition plans (with consent) so providers can put early support in place—reducing the “September spike” in NEET figures.
“We already fund in-house youth-support workers—why duplicate?”
Our coaches complement, not duplicate, existing provision. We focus exclusively on the NEET transition window (Year 10 through first post-16 term) using a coaching methodology rather than key-work or case-holding. Partnering with us lets in-house staff keep broader caseloads while we deliver the intensive, time-limited intervention proven to lift NEET figures; in pilots, schools reported a 25 percentage-point drop in ‘unknown’ destinations without increasing their own staffing.
“Budgets are tight—how do we justify the cost?”
Independent SROI analysis shows our programme returns £4.30 for every £1 invested through reduced benefit dependency, higher earnings, and lower youth-justice expenditure. Because we bill per successful engagement (student retains a post-16 place for six months), the local authority pays only for demonstrable outcomes—turning a revenue line into a cost-avoidance strategy.
“What if students refuse to engage, making the contract ineffective?”
Engagement is built into our model: Coaches meet students where they choose (home, café, skate park) and many have lived experience that supports building trust. Our three-step re-engagement protocol recovers most no-shows inside 72 hours, giving us a historic 92 % completion rate across 300+ referrals. If a young person withdraws after three documented attempts, we refund the placement or offer a replacement referral at no extra charge, eliminating commissioner risk.
Ready to Start?
Contact us to discuss options for becoming a partner:
Paul Seaman, Programme Manager
paul.seaman@dorsetcommunityaction.org.uk
07421 994587