Overworld AMP: AIM’s 2024 Recognised Centre of the Year

Independent Alternative Provision, Overworld AMP Ltd, has been unveiled as AIM Qualifications and Assessment Group’s (AIM) Recognised Centre of the Year award winners for 2024.

The annual awards celebrate the outstanding achievements of AIM stakeholders; with the Recognised Centre of the Year award category specifically acknowledging the impact of approved centres who deliver outstanding results through AIM’s regulated qualifications. 

Overworld AMP beat off competition from several strong education establishments, to be crowned winners for the state-of-the-art alternative provision (AP) they provided in mentorship, eSports, personal and social development, and creative media during the 2023-24 academic year. 

With a team of just 23 staff, the organisation offers individualised programmes, qualifications, guidance and support on a one-to-one basis to neurodiverse 8–25-year-olds who are unable to access full-time education. 

Pupils in AP represent some of the highest levels of need and most significant vulnerabilities in the country. 

81% of pupils in AP are on the SEND register, nearly six times the rate in mainstream schools. Additionally, almost half (47%) of pupils in AP are eligible for free school meals, compared to 13.6% of their mainstream peers. The pandemic further compounded these challenges, making it more critical than ever for these pupils to receive a high-quality, appropriately calibrated education. 

Overworld addresses this critical issue head-on. They adapted from a leisure business to an independent AP to align their offer with the increasing demand for a skilled workforce by the creative media industry. Their mentors provide friendly, patient, and judgment-free support needed by learners and their partnership with AIM, means they can offer clear, interest-based learning opportunities to their learners.

“We are overjoyed to be crowned the AIM Recognised Centre of the Year 2024! By creating the tailored environment that we do, we can encourage more individuals out of isolation and into employment through qualifications. Our approach aligns with their passions and talents while also developing essential personal and social development skills. 

“The inclusion of AIM qualifications and kitemarking our own training courses through AIM’s Quality Mark services (formerly Investing in your Future (IF)) has significantly enhanced Overworld AMP Ltd’s appeal to our clients. These trusted, Ofqual-regulated qualifications engage young people; re-igniting their self-believe, by providing clear qualification pathways which make it easy to monitor learner progress. This has earned the trust and confidence of our stakeholders”. 

Emma Rothery, Training and Quality Manager at Overworld AMP Ltd

AIM’s Director of Strategic Growth and Service Excellence, Matt Evans, visited Overworld headquarters in Surrey to personally deliver the award trophy to the winners. He commended the team on their achievements and their role in empowering the futures of their learners.

“We are pleased to present Overworld AMP Ltd with the 2024 award for AIM Recognised Centre of the Year” he said. “We’ve seen in the news recently that there is a growing population of young people across the country who are unable to attend mainstream education due to unmet Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and/or Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs. 

“The work the team is doing daily to provide flexible educational packages to vulnerable learners, is truly commendable and goes some way to bridge that gap. We are proud as an Awarding Organisation to be able to facilitate what they do through our regulated qualifications and endorsed provision”.