The Evaluation of the Young Persons’ Stepping-Stone Programme: A Pilot ESOL 16+ Course for Newcomers in Northern Ireland

This chapter describes the evaluation of the first pilot ESOL 16+ course for newcomers in Northern Ireland. Inward migration and ESOL landscapes have changed considerably with increasing numbers of migrants/refugees/newcomers resettling under European ascension and refugee resettlement schemes. However, ESOL provision has lacked professional and learner consultancy; it has been reactionary and piecemeal, resulting in an educationally neglected cohort aged 16 to 19-year-olds from refugee and asylum-seeker communities, including unaccompanied minors. These young people are in an indeterminate educational state due to their age, interrupted or little formal education, and English language proficiency. Therefore, they cannot access formal secondary, further or higher education. A pilot 16 + ESOL programme was developed, delivered, and evaluated within community education settings and provided 16 hours of structured education over 24 weeks for 12 young people. This evaluation measured the project’s impact on the participants’ development in English language ability and socio-emotional well-being skills. This was achieved by statistically analysing the language and well-being assessment scores at the beginning and end of the project. The evaluation showed significant improvement in learners’ socio-emotional well-being, leading to subsequent improvement in English language development and greater motivation to continue engaging in education.