PROJECT 01 · ARTEFACT 1
Service landscape
Four bands across the three key stages?KEY STAGEThe blocks England divides schooling into. Key Stage 3 is roughly ages 11–14, Key Stage 4 is 14–16 and leads to GCSEs, and Key Stage 5 is 16–18.: what the system is doing, the young person’s reality, what we build, and where it reaches. Drawn from my own landscape mapping for Beeline?BEELINEThe Greater Manchester service that helps young people up to 25 explore careers and find a next step..
BAND 1 · WHAT THE SYSTEM IS DOING
| KEY STAGE 3 · YR 7–9 | KEY STAGE 4 · YR 10–11 | KEY STAGE 5 · YR 12–13 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The system | Pressure is low, but the runway to the Year 9 options fork begins. | Post-16 deadlines land while Progress 8 pulls toward academic routes. | Retakes, transition years and high-stakes applications compete for capacity. |
| Equalex tier | Introduce & Inspire | Investigate & Explore | Apply & Demonstrate |
| Skills Builder steps | Steps 1–5 | Steps 6–10 | Steps 11–15 |
ROUGH WORK · SKETCHED FIRST · 1 SKETCH ▾
BAND 2 · THE PRESSURE CURVE
how much is being decided, and how hard it is to undo- 1KS3 · EVIDENCEDYear 9 options forkSubjects are chosen before most young people have met the jobs they lead to. Little feels decided, but the runway has started.
- 2KS4 · EVIDENCEDMock examsPredicted grades start deciding what a young person can apply for.
- 3KS4 · EVIDENCEDPost-16 deadlinesApplications land while Progress 8 pulls schools toward academic routes. The highest-pressure point in the map.
- 4KS4 · EVIDENCEDThe summer gapResults, then a gap with no one holding the thread. The September Guarantee sits here as a local authority duty.
- 5KS5 · EVIDENCEDMaths and English re-sitsLevel 2 maths and English become a condition of funding for continued study.
- 6KS5 · EVIDENCEDUCAS?UCASThe Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, the single system through which people apply to UK universities. and apprenticeship?APPRENTICESHIPA paid job with training built in, leading to a recognised qualification. An alternative to full-time study after 16 or 18. windowHigh-stakes applications compete for the same capacity as transition years and retakes.
- 7KS5 · INFERRED, NEEDS CONFIRMINGRisk of NEET?NEETNot in education, employment or training. The UK term for a young person who has left school and has none of the three.Where a young person falls out with nothing to fall back on. Drawn as inferred: the data to confirm it sits in Compass+ and local authority returns.
- 8KS5 · EVIDENCEDDestination?DESTINATIONWhere a young person goes after finishing a key stage: a course, an apprenticeship, a job, or none of them. Schools report it.Where they land, recorded after the fact through local authority returns.
Post-16 deadlines are the highest-pressure point in the map. Risk of NEET is drawn as inferred: the data to confirm it sits in Compass+ and local authority returns.
KEY · — = EVIDENCED · - - - = INFERRED · ● = HIGHEST PRESSURE
THE YOUNG PERSON’S REALITY · SIX BARRIERS
| BARRIER, IN THEIR WORDS | KS3 | KS4 | KS5 | TAG |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| “It’s not for people like me” Gender, class, “I’m not a builder” | ■ | ■ | ■ | voice louder than theirs |
| “I can’t see the link” Subjects to real jobs | ■ | ■ | □ | |
| “I’ll play it safe” Peer copying, fear of visible failure | ■ | ■ | □ | too many roads |
| “Someone else is steering” Parents, teachers, outdated advice | □ | ■ | ■ | voice louder than theirs |
| “I’m stuck and left behind” Re-sits, foundation year, wrong path | □ | □ | ■ | held in place |
| “I can’t prove myself” Assessment centres, interviews | □ | ■ | ■ | held in place |
BAND 3 · WHAT WE BUILD
For the adults around them: a parents and carers support page and Beeline support on GMCA?GMCAGreater Manchester Combined Authority, the regional government for Greater Manchester’s ten boroughs., both live.
KEY · ■ = live now · ⬚ = next, not built yet
BAND 4 · WHERE IT REACHES
delivery buys reach, channels buy trustKEY · ■ = reaches well · ■ = reaches weakly · ⬚ = not available