Richmond's post-16 education and training offer for young people aged 16 to 18, and up to 25 for those with SEND, has been deemed suitable and sufficient
to meet the local authority's statutory responsibilities. This assessment was made by the Education and Children's Services Committee during a meeting on Thursday, March 26, 2026, based on several key factors.
The committee noted a high rate of sustained education, training, and employment for 16 and 17-year-olds in the borough, which exceeds the national rate. The Department for Education's latest published data for the academic year 2024/25 shows that 94.9% of pupils in Richmond upon Thames, who left Key Stage 4 at age 16, were in sustained education, training, or employment. This is better than the national rate of 91.3%, meaning Richmond's rate exceeds the national average by 3.6 percentage points.
The provision includes strong academic pathways through eight school sixth forms and Richmond upon Thames College, offering a broad range of A-level subjects. There has also been an expansion in vocational education options. Five school sixth forms now offer vocational qualifications at Level 3 in ten subjects, including BTEC qualifications in Business Studies, Creative Media, Criminology, Dance, Enterprise, Health & Social Care, Music Performance, Music Technology, Performing Arts, and Sport. Richmond upon Thames College provides a wide array of vocational opportunities at Levels 1, 2, and 3 across 28 roles in six professional disciplines, such as Art and Design, Business, Computing and IT, Construction, Childcare, Engineering, Health and Social Care, Media, Music, Performing Arts, Professional Cookery, Science, Sport, and Travel and Tourism.
Apprenticeships are also a key component, with 81 young people on apprenticeship programs in 2024/25. Providers include Achieving for Children's Way2Work service, Richmond upon Thames College, South Thames Colleges Group, Multiverse, Transport for London, and Step into the NHS. The Way2Work service offers intermediate and advanced apprenticeships in business support, customer service, childcare, and education, with a focus on supporting vulnerable learners.
For young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), specialist provision is expanding. The strategy to reduce the number of SEND young people traveling outside the borough for their post-16 education and training includes the proposed development of a Post-16 Campus. Currently, 302 (54.7%) students with SEND have post-16 placements commissioned from outside the borough, with 54 of these students (9.8%) supported in the independent sector. While provision is growing, continued work is needed with local employers to expand the breadth of opportunities available to these young people.
Additional provision has been introduced for young people needing to retake GCSEs or requiring functional skills in English and maths, notably through the Catalyst program. However, a potential challenge identified is that schools may decide not to offer an A-level subject if there are small numbers of students requesting it, which could limit choice for some students.
The committee's findings are detailed in the Richmond Post-16 report 2026, available at https://cabnet.richmond.gov.uk/documents/s500020085/8.%20Richmond%20Post-16%20report%202026.pdf.
