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Inclusion project delivery subcontracted to The Association for Science Education (ASE)

24 August 2021

Our Inclusion in Schools project, delivered on behalf of the Department for Education (DfE) for England, is moving into a new phase, with delivery of the programme in schools to be subcontracted to the Association for Science Education (ASE) from the start of the new school year. IOP will continue to oversee the management of the programme on behalf of the DfE.

 


The Inclusion in Schools project aims to significantly increase the number of students from under-represented groups progressing to physics-based education (A-level physics, vocational or technical) beyond the age of 16. It does so through targeted interventions to address barriers to inclusion at a whole-school level.

This new partnership with ASE reflects the high level of ambition in the IOP’s strategy: We can’t deliver it alone. So, wherever we can, we want to form partnerships to deliver more together, while continuing to engage on shaping the agenda and debate.

ASE is an active membership body that has been supporting all those involved in science education from pre-schools to higher education for over 100 years. The Inclusion in Schools project is central to their strategy and they have successfully delivered similar large-scale projects in the past. Our decision to partner with ASE came following a competitive tender process. IOP employees will transfer to the ASE on September 1 2021 and IOP will continue to be responsible to the DfE for overall delivery.

This move follows the announcement last month that the SPN Physics Support for Schools delivery in England is transferring to STEM Learning, also from 1 September 2021, as part of IOP’s new model of subcontracting more operational delivery to specialist partners.

Rachel Youngman, Deputy Chief Executive of IOP, said: “We remain committed to leading real change across physics, including supporting more schools to give students from all backgrounds the opportunity to succeed.

“Working with specialist delivery partners like the ASE and STEM Learning allows us to deliver more together on issues of mutual concern such as working towards a world where all students with the ambition have the chance to realise their potential in physics.”

She added: “We are very grateful to the staff who have successfully delivered these programmes for IOP over recent years and look forward to supporting them as they continue this work in our delivery partners.”