Education for young people with SEND

At 16, you can stay in education or start your career. There isn't a right or wrong answer.

Your education setting choices

There are many education choices once you turn 16. If you're not too sure, speak to your teacher, careers advisor or a family member.

After your GCSEs, you can go into sixth form or college. It depends on the entry criteria whether you may be able to:

If sixth form isn't for you, why not go to a specialist college or training provider!

Specialist education settings allow you to:

If you don't want to study at an school or college, you can study at home. Home education means that you can:

Adult education courses help you learn essential skills. You'll need them to take part in life, learning, and work. You can:

They offer classroom-base courses such as English and maths. Or why not learn digital skills or functional skills in English!

If English is not your first language, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) courses are available too.

Alternative social care settings support you through activities and training.

They help you to develop your life skills, including:

To access these settings, a social care assessment will take place.

From the age of 18 you can attend a higher education setting, for example a university.

Higher education often refers to studying at university.

If you go to university, your educational health care (EHC) plan stops. However, there are a variety of funding options and support available to you.