Teenagers who drop out of school or training at 16 will face criminal action and £50 on-the-spot fines under plans to raise the age for leaving full-time education.

Alan Johnson, the Education Secretary, said that dropouts would be served with ASBO-style “attendance orders” specifying a study course that they are expected to attend.

Breaching an attendance order will be a criminal offence, punishable by a £50 fixed penalty or prosecution. Ultimate sanctions include community sentences or fines.

Mr Johnson accepted that there was no point in forcing nonacademic teenagers to struggle on in the classroom. But he emphasised that compulsory education or training to 18 was essential to ensure that the next generation of workers could compete in a knowledge-based global economy.

Expert View

The real question facing ministers is not whether Britain can afford to raise the school leaving age, but whether it can afford not to

Alexandra Frean

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At present Britain has one of the lowest staying-on rates for education among developed countries, ranking twentieth in the OECD rankings, with 76 per cent of young people aged 16 to 18 remaining in education or training.

“It should be as unacceptable to see a 16-year-old in the workplace without any education or training as it was to see a 14-year-old, which used to be common before the Butler Education Act [of 1944],” he said.

He added that he expected the sanctions, which may also include the confiscation of driving licences, to apply only to a small “hardcore” of refuseniks.

Under the plans, training could take the form of full-time academic or vocational studies, workplace apprenticeships or training courses. Teenagers already in employment would be expected to undertake accredited training one day a week.

The names of all 16 and 17-year-olds will be added to a database held by local authorities so that they can track their participation in education or training.

Local authorities will receive £476 million a year to employ advisers to help young people to choose suitable forms of training.

The education maintenance allowance of £10 to £30 a week, which is paid to 400,000 youngsters from low-income families to encourage them to stay at school, will be replaced with a new “training wage”.

This is likely to include a basic allowance for those who turn up to training, and “bonus” payments for those who gain qualifications and demonstrate progress.

The new measures will be phased in from 2013, when the leaving age in England will be raised to 17.

In 2015 it will be raised again to 18. The older leaving age will cover pupils starting secondary school in September 2008.

Currently, parents face criminal prosecution if they fail to ensure that a child under 16 goes to school. The new measures shift the legal responsibility on to the young person.

Employers will face fines if they do not allow employees aged 16 and 17 to undertake accredited training. This rule will apply equally to parents employing their children in a family business.

Start-up costs of the measure are expected to be £200 million, with annual costs running at £700 million.

The plans received a mixed reaction. David Willetts, the Shadow Education Secretary, said that it would be better to focus on improving education standards up to the age of 16.

Richard Lambert, the director-general of the CBI, the employers organisation, said that it was a necessary step. But Steve Sinnott, general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, warned that criminalising young people could alienate those already disaffected with the system.

The Scottish Executive has no plans to raise the education leaving age from 16. The Welsh Assembly aims to increase the number of 16 to 18-year-olds in education or training and is due to issue a strategy this year.

The rebels and the cool dudes

The Green Paper describes the types of teenager who drop out of education:

Angry young rebels Against the system and very hostile to authority figures, such as teachers. Disrupt lessons. Could be encouraged to take up college courses

Quitters Believe they have tried and failed. Need to be offered courses that are not too difficult

Rebels without a cause Impatient to get a job and start earning cash. Believe that their personality will be their key to success. School is boring, but they are not hostile to teachers. Apprenticeships seem the best option

Cool dudes Life is about having fun and school gets in the way. Teachers see them as lazy. They need to see links between their education and interests. Mentoring could help

Hedgers Waiting until they get their GCSE results. Vocational options can help

Settlers Sit between the “cool dudes” and the “quitters”. They want an easy life and need to be offered courses on which they can succeed

Escapists Dream of being discovered, but are disengaged. Vocational courses and mentoring can help to get them back on track

Strugglers Want to do well but have unrealistic aspirations. They are eager to get on but need courses at an appropriate level

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