New River College (NRC) is the preferred commissioner for alternative provision (AP) in Islington and offers a service-level agreement (SLA) to Islington secondary schools that buy into the service. The SLA ensures that schools meet statutory duties in relation to safeguarding and quality assurance when placing children in off-site provision.

Approved Provider List

NRC works in close partnership with AP providers and neighbouring boroughs to gain expertise around existing and new providers with the aim of establishing an Approved Provider list. NRC’s expertise and established relationships with these providers enables:

• the strategic planning of the scale and range of alternative provision 
• improvements to NRC’s ability to risk assess and identify suitable referrals and placements of individual pupils
• alternative education providers to be supported and challenged.

NRC will act on behalf of schools to:

• commission appropriate alternative provision for pupils that suitably meets their needs and aspirations, is good quality and represents value for money
• ensure all AP settings commissioned to provide a service are safe and compliant with relevant health, safety and safeguarding legislation
• ensure that a risk assessment has been carried out for each individual pupil before the placement is commissioned
• ensure the provision of appropriate pastoral care for pupils placed in commissioned AP
• support and ensure partnership working to offer targeted solutions and interventions for pupils as required, to ensure their safety and wellbeing
• ensure that pupils attending AP are provided with the same opportunities as pupils attending school in order to access appropriate education, employment and training routes with the support of allocated advisors from the Post-16 Progression Team
• give schools assurance that the commissioned AP meets clearly defined Ofsted and DfE standards
• ensure the AP provider enters pupils for qualifications and exams, and will share the results with schools in August.

Please note: schools that directly commission AP will be responsible for all of the above.

Schools’ responsibilities

Schools using NRC’s service-level agreement will be responsible for:

• the school roll – pupils attending AP must remain on the school’s roll until they reach school-leaving age (last Friday in June) as schools have equal responsibility for all pupils on roll, whether they are educated on or off-site
• attendance – the school’s register must reflect pupils’ actual attendance at AP. ‘B’ should be used to indicate that the pupil attended the off-site provision, while absences should be correctly coded, for example, ‘C’, ‘O’ etc
• examination entries – these will count towards the school’s performance tables.

North London Quality Assurance Partnership

NRC is a member of the North London Quality Assurance Partnership (NLQAP), a sub-regional strategic partnership whose membership includes the London Boroughs of Camden, Enfield, Islington, Hackney and Haringey. NLQAP aims to promote collaborative working in relation to Key Stage 4 alternative provision to ensure best practice to improve the quality of both the service, standards and outcomes for all pupils. All commissioned providers are:Ofsted registered and required to achieve at least a ‘Good’ Ofsted rating.

The NLQAP conducts Quality Assurance (QA) and Quality Improvement Plan (QIP) visits to all providers, to ensure good standards are maintained. It works in partnership to address areas requiring improvement. Reports are provided within all key areas including:

• Safeguarding
• Teaching and Learning
• Health and Safety
• Behaviour management
• Attendance.

AP providers may be removed from the Approved Provider List if safeguarding requirements are not met, or if the providers are unable to provide evidence of required improvements in other key areas following NLQAP support and QIP visits.

For more information on NRC's alternative provision, call Charlene Hornby, Alternative Provision Coordinator, on 07795 318160 or 020 7504 0534 (option 2) or email E. Charlene.hornby@nrc.islington.sch.uk