Breakthrough provides a powerful toolkit which enables young people to deal with the issues they are facing. It helps them to see that they have choices, that they can take more control of their lives and that they can develop the thinking skills they need to become self-motivated, lifelong learners.

Breakthrough is being successfully used in communities to move disaffected youths back into society, in schools and colleges to improve results and progressions, in Entry to Employment initiatives and by training providers to keep learners more focused on their goals. Breakthrough enhances other training provision because evaluations of the programme have shown that Breakthrough participants are more likely to go on to further or higher education, and to finish their course of study once begun.

The programme has gained widespread acclaim in the educational community and with social services agencies for its ability to improve performance and raise standards. Breakthrough is as effective in improving the life chances of young people in difficulty as it is with those who are already coping well in the mainstream.

The core units of the programme are designed to cover the essence of the Pacific Institute's well established teaching, founded on the best academic research from the field of cognitive psychology and on studies of the way that high performers learn and think. The Pacific Institute has translated this information into a set of principles and interactive learning materials that help young people to see that the beliefs they hold about themselves as learners have a profound effect on how much of their potential they will eventually realise.