Orientation Programme for Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (UASC)

The National Transfer Scheme for UC&YP was introduced in 2016 by the Home Office and Department for Education and was described as a ‘new voluntary transfer arrangement between local authorities for the care of unaccompanied children who arrive in the UK and claim asylum”.

In November 2021, transfers under the scheme became mandated for all Local Authorities to share responsibility nationally and equitably for these children and so that their needs could be met more swiftly with reduced reliance on hotel accommodation.

Oxfordshire has a strong history of responding to the needs of UC&YP and currently has a dedicated countywide UC&YP team to meet the needs of these children upon their arrival. This team works alongside experienced partner agencies who deliver support services to help them to integrate within the community.

The Orientation Programme (OP) enables UCYP aged between 13-17 years old to gain access into a learning pathway, which also supports them to integrate into the local area and more broadly the UK and delivers a level of education which reflects their specific needs as unaccompanied children and introducing them to English and cultural expectations, enables them to gain better outcomes within the next steps of their educational journey.

The OP provides access to a four-week rolling orientation and induction programme, consisting of both a taught and experiential curriculum delivered through a classroom environment as well as out in the community. The Provider will work in partnership with the Council’s Virtual School for Children We Care For (CWCF) and Care Leavers (CL) to prepare the unaccompanied young people for onward transition into schools or colleges.