The Virtual School has had statutory responsibilities since 2014 to be the corporate parents
and champion children in our care. This includes having direct input in some of our children’s
lives and working with professionals to overcome barriers to learning that our children may
have. Key features of the Virtual School are to contribute to increasing the educational
performance of children in our care by:
• Raise attainment and accelerate progress for children in care across all key stages.
• Improve school attendance and reduce exclusions.
• Improve the quality of Personal Education Plans.
• Provide and support a range of opportunities to widen horizons and raise achievement.
In 2018 additional responsibilities were added to the Virtual School’s remit which is to provide
advice and guidance for previously looked after children, Post 16 young people in care and
care leavers. More recently, these responsibilities have extended to also include children
known to social care as the 2018 CIN review showed that almost 1/10 have had a social
worker and those known to social care statistically underperform compared to their peers.1
The diagram above helps to demonstrate the difference between our core statutory
responsibilities and additional responsibilities in providing support and guidance.