What is the study about? This study is being carried out by researchers from the Institute for Employment Research at the University of Warwick. It is funded by the Edge Foundation and City & Guilds and. The purpose of the study is to examine the motivation of young people for participating in vocational education and to increase understanding of the possible outcomes they experience after their studies. As a person currently in vocational education, your views and experiences will form a vital part of this research.

Do I have to take part? Your participation is entirely voluntary. By completing this survey, you are giving your consent for the information that you have supplied to be used by us. You may withdraw from the survey at any time, without giving a reason and you will not be penalised in any way. There will be no further contact by the research team if you withdraw.

What will happen to me if I take part? You will be asked to complete a short paper questionnaire which should take no more than 15 minutes. Most questions will provide you with a list of possible answers. The survey will also ask for your contact details which, if you provide them, will be used to contact you in about 6 months to complete another short survey about what you’ve been doing since completing your current course. The aim is to follow-up participants twice a year to see what work, education and other activities you have been pursuing since completing current course. If you provide your contact details and participate in future surveys there will also be entered into a prize draw (details of the prize draws are provided on the questionnaire).

Will my taking part be kept confidential? All information collected will be kept strictly confidential. You do not need to provide your name or address in order to participate but if you provide your contact details this will allow you to take part in later waves of this study and also to be entered into a prize draw. Your contact details will be stored separately and confidentially and will not be linked to your response. How your data is collected, handled, stored and destroyed will comply with the Data Protection Act 1998. We will safeguard confidentiality during this study.

What will happen when the study ends? The findings from the study and all associated outputs will be made available to you on the study’s webpage (http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/ier/research/vetrack/). Findings from the study will be provided to the project sponsors (Edge Foundation and City & Guilds) and will also be published. Participants and the institutions in which they study and / or work will not be identified in any report. The anonymity of all respondents will be protected. Any personal details will be destroyed once the study has ended.

Who should I contact if I wish to make a complaint? Any complaints regarding this study can be directed to:

Head of Research Governance, Research & Impact Services, University House, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 8UW, Tel: 024 76 522746 or email: researchgovernance at warwick dot ac dot uk

What if I want more information about the study? If anything is unclear or you require any further information, please do not hesitate to a member of the research team:

Stefanie Poole, Project Assistant, Institute for Employment Research, University of Warwick, Stefanie dot Poole at warwick dot ac dot uk, Tel: +44(0)2476524127

Thank you for reading this information sheet and considering taking part in this study