Vision and Values

 For many of the young people referred to ITN, education has become associated with anxiety, exclusion, placement breakdown or repeated experiences of feeling unsuccessful. That means progress doesn’t always begin with a worksheet. It can begin with turning up. Staying for a session. Trusting an adult. Trying something new. Communicating a need. Or beginning to believe that education might be possible again. Our tutors prioritise consistency, emotional safety and meaningful relationships because these create the foundations from which learning can begin. We take the time to understand the learner before expecting the learner to engage with us. Engagement is progress – and from engagement, we build towards education.

We believe alternative provision should be able to demonstrate the difference it is making. Every learner begins with a structured baseline, followed by clear, achievable small-step targets linked to their EHCP outcomes, educational priorities or reintegration goals. Using the nationally recognised RARPA framework, we capture progress that traditional academic measures can often miss – including engagement, communication, confidence, independence and readiness to learn, alongside academic development. Schools and local authorities have visibility of attendance, targets and progress reporting throughout the placement, creating transparency around the provision and the learner’s journey. This also enables us to identify what is working, where barriers remain and how provision needs to adapt. Progress isn’t assumed. It is captured, evidenced and shared.

The Network in Inclusive Tutoring Network is more than our name. It is how we believe alternative provision should work. A child’s education does not exist in isolation, and neither should the support around them.

The young people referred to us can have complex needs, multiple professionals involved in their care and education, and experiences of services that have not always joined together effectively. Our role is to help create a network around the learner. That starts with the people who know them best. We work closely with families, schools, local authorities, SEND teams and the wider professionals involved with each young person, sharing information, listening to different perspectives and adapting provision as the learner’s needs develop. But our network goes further than communication.

We actively develop collaborations and partnerships with specialist organisations, education providers and community services so that we can bring additional expertise, experiences and opportunities into a learner’s programme when they need them. We don’t expect one tutor to be everything to one child. Our tutors are part of a wider professional network, giving them access to shared expertise, guidance, resources and specialist input that can strengthen the provision around their learner. When a barrier arises, our starting point is not simply “Can we provide this?” We ask: “Who within our network can help us make this work for this learner?” That might mean accessing specialist expertise, introducing a different learning environment, working towards recognised qualifications, using a learner’s interests to create new opportunities for engagement, or collaborating with another professional or organisation. Families are an essential part of that network too.

There is no standard ITN package because there is no standard learner. A young person may need an EOTAS package, interim education while awaiting a placement, support following placement breakdown, reintegration provision or our structured Step-Up to Secondary transition support. Their programme may need to begin with relationship-building and engagement before progressing towards more formal learning.

The hours, environment, teaching approach, curriculum, targets and pace of progression are shaped around the individual. And because we continually monitor engagement and progress, provision can evolve alongside the learner rather than remaining fixed around the original referral.

We meet the learner where they are – and build from there.

Re-engagement matters, but it should lead somewhere. Alongside rebuilding confidence and readiness to learn, we want young people to have opportunities to achieve outcomes they can take forward into their next stage of education, training or adulthood. Through our partnership with LCB Education, learners can work towards recognised AQA Unit Awards and Functional Skills pathways from Pre-Entry through to Level 2. For a young person whose previous experience of education may have been defined by what they couldn’t do, gaining a recognised achievement can mean much more than a certificate. It can provide evidence of progress, rebuild confidence and demonstrate that their educational journey has continued, even if it has taken a different route. We hold high aspirations for every learner – whatever their starting point.