CONTEXTVET@WORK project looked at one of the main challenge of the Europe 2020 Strategy: to reduce Early School Leaving (ESL) to less than 10% and contributed to increasing attainment in tertiary education to at least 40% by 2020. Completing upper secondary education is recommended as the minimum entrance qualification when making the crucial transition from education to the labour market. ESL is a multi-faceted and complex problem caused by a cumulative process of disengagement. Schools and especially VET Institutions play an important role in addressing ESL but they cannot and should not work in isolation. Comprehensive approaches that focus on the root causes of ESL are required to reduce ESL. To reinforce the motivation of learners and prevent ESL, the EU strongly foster the commitment to offer learners the opportunity to have new flexible approaches based on Personal Learning Plans (PLPs) elaborated by VET staff (teachers, coaches, trainers, tutors) in collaboration with Enterprises Staff. This is in line with most EU countries educational policies which by law promote Alternation School-Work and/or Dual Systems aimed at supporting the stay in the educational context. OBJECTIVES The VET@WORK project had the following main objectives: 1) develop flexible pathways which connect the VET formal school curriculum to Work Based Learning acquired even in an EU context;2) enrich the learning gained at school level with the acquiring of professional skills to facilitate the entrance to the labour market;3) foster the implementation of ECVET principles and tools;4) reinforce a NA and EU Network of VET Schools, VET providers, Enterprises and Social Parties to allow the active participation in the Alternation School –Work paths or in the frame of the Dual system.The direct PARTICIPANTS at the activities developed have been:O1 – VET@WORK Guidelines for training VET staff – The training course testing had 15 VET staff participating in each country, in IT 45, for a total of 105 participants;O2 - VET@WORK Guidelines for training Enterprises Staff -The training course testing had 10 Enterprises staff participating in each country , in IT 30, for a total of 70 participants.THE GUIDELINES AIMED AT THE TRAINING OF THE 2 MAIN TARGET OF THE PROJECT (VET STAFF and ENTERPRISES STAFF) TO IMPROVE THEIR COMPETENCES IN: 1) DESIGNING LEARNERS PERSONAL LEARNING PLANS (PLPs);2) RECOGNIZE NON FORMAL AND INFORMAL LEARNING IN THE LEARNERS FORMAL CURRICULUM.VET@WORK EU SHORT JOINT STAFF TRAINING EVENT – The activity addressed to 13 VET STAFF TO IMPROVE THEIR COMPETENCES IN ECVET IMPLEMENTATION ON MOBILITY PROGRAMMES.MULTIPLIER EVENTS: No. 6 dissemination workshops at local level for a total of 303 participants (210 were the participants foreseen in the project); a Final Conference held in Florence/IT for at least 107 participants (90 were the participants foreseen in the project). All the collaborating organizations (19) participated to the project activities.METHODOLOGYThe project consortium during its two years funding period implemented activities on the basis of a matrix organisation allowing for 4 horizontal project key actions and 5 thematic phases. HORIZONTAL ACTIONS: 1. Project management and sustainability;2. Quality management and assurance;3. Dissemination;4. Exploitation: the exploitation run in parallel with the activities for dissemination and ensured the use of the outputs in the sense of valorization.THEMATIC PROJECT PHASES AND RESULTS: 1. RESEARCH: to investigate NA legislation in the frame of Alternation School and Work and/or Dual system and competences needed by VET staff;2. CREATION OF 2 GUIDELINES FOR TRAINING VET STAFF AND ENTERPRISES STAFF to plan PLPs and WBL learners/students Curriculum including mobility experience abroad and quality process through ECVET implementation.3. SHORT TERM JOINT STAFF TRAINING EVENT: to improve competences of VET staff in the ECVET implementation on mobility programmes and in a EU context.4. MULTIPLIERS EVENTS: to disseminate products and assure sustainability.A sustainable usage of the products and outcomes has been assured by: - Innovative potential and high quality of products and outcomes;- High target-group orientation, real relevance for target groups and therefore high acceptance within these groups;- High adaptability (e.g. for other level of schools which have work-based learning approaches in the Fomal Curriculum such as Technical schools;- High support by relevant stakeholders and political decision makers (Regional Authorities, Chambers of Commerce and other policy makers).The long term benefit will be assured by the fact that NA and EU policy foster the Alternation Schhol and Work and the Dual System methodology to prevent ESL and better up the job opportunities for youth.