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EXTENDED SCHOOLS - THEIR FUNCTION

INTRODUCTION

An extended school is one which seeks to offer a range of “core services” to pupils, parents, carers and the wider community. These services are wide ranging and their main purpose is to improve and increase opportunities for all and to widen participation.

There is growing evidence to support the view that schools that develop extended services become an important part of the community and, as a result, tend to have fewer problems with behaviour, attendance and motivation than schools which are isolated from their community. Beyond the benefits to children’s education, schools with extended services also work on the understanding that a school that is linked to its community becomes part of that community’s regeneration, strengthening important relationships, supporting adult and community learning, and improving health.

The core services which extended schools in the Driffield cluster hope to develop are:

CHILDCARE

Extended schools play an important role in the provision/delivery of childcare. Government strategy is that by 2010 all parents of primary-age children will be able to access affordable “wrap around” childcare at or through their school from 8am to 6pm, all year round. The childcare can be based at the child’s primary school, at a nearby school or on a different site provided in partnership with private or voluntary sector providers (including childminders), with supervised travel arrangements to and from the provision.

By 2010 all secondary schools will be open from 8am to 6pm all year round, providing access to a range of activities for young people such as music, sport and holiday activities.

There are several models of childcare delivery that schools and providers can adopt:

1. Direct delivery – the school makes all the arrangements including employing staff and administering and charging for the provision. This model of childcare is not usually financially viable in schools with fewer that 250 pupils.

2. Delivering with third parties – the school works with a third party provider from the private or voluntary sector, including networks of childminders.

3. Working in clusters with other local schools – some schools will work in clusters to share resources and to rotate responsibility for childcare over holiday periods.

HEALTH & SOCIAL CARE

Outside of core curriculum time (such as PHSCE) the school is to arrange for pupils, parents, carers and the wider community to access health and social care courses/programmes/workshops/training/drop-ins, etc. These services are usually delivered by external specialist organisations or by specialist workers who support, or work for the school. Services offered can include: parenting support and advice, nutrition, smoking cessation, family planning, counselling, ante-natal, substance misuse, first aid, emotional well-being, yoga, young carers, young offenders, accident prevention.

FAMILY LEARNING

All family learning programmes encourage family members to learn together. They promote learning together as a family but also learning within the family. They should aim to allow adults and children to pursue further learning. The “inter-generational” aspect of family programmes is important: the key principle is that children and adults learn together.

Family learning is divided into two distinct areas:

Family Learning Programmes aim to get adults and children learning as or within a family, or to help parents/carers learn how to support their children’s learning. They have two main aims:
• to develop the skills or knowledge of the adult and the child
• to help parents/carers to be able to support their children’s learning and development more actively and with greater confidence, and to be able to understand why that support is important.
Courses offered can be wide ranging and include: art and crafts, hands on science, first aid, ICT, nutrition and cookery.

Family literacy, language and numeracy programmes have three main aims:
• to improve the literacy, language and numeracy skills of parents/carers
• to improve the ability of parents/carers to help their children
• to help children acquire literacy, language and numeracy skills.
Courses offered can include: “Keeping up with the Children” literacy and numeracy courses offered by the Family Learning Mentors.

COMMUNITY AND ADULT LEARNING

An extended school will seek to increase the provision of a range of activities and learning opportunities which aim to widen participation in learning for adults over the age of 19 years. This includes the provision of both accredited and non-accredited courses/programmes/workshops, etc in venues accessible to the community.

Courses can be offered on the school site during lesson time, if space is available, or out of school hours.

YOUTH ACTIVITIES

An extended school will seek to provide, or host a range of activities and services specifically designed to meet the needs of the young people in the community and so encourage the inclusion of young people in all aspects of school and community life. Examples of youth activities include brownies, guides, scouts, youth clubs, Duke of Edinburgh, youth esteem, etc.

STUDY SUPPORT

The definition of study support is a learning activity outside normal lessons which young people take part in voluntarily. As a general rule it seeks to include all those who wish to take part and there is no charge to participants. By embracing many activities, it can help improve young people’s motivation, build their self-esteem and help them become more effective learners. Above all it aims to raise achievement. Activities include homework and study clubs, sport and outdoor activities, the creative arts, community volunteering, mentoring, opportunities to pursue particular interests ( such as chess, local history, languages) and learning about learning.

Although historically many study support activities have been facilitated by teachers, there are now many more opportunities for outside agencies to provide these activities, including Sports Development coaches, Youth Service, Connexions, local voluntary groups, etc.

SPORTS AND ARTS

Included in this category are any activity opportunities that take place outside of curriculum time on the school site and which provide participation opportunities in recreational and organised coached activities for young people, adults, community groups and members of the wider community.

The Every Child Matters legislation requires all secondary schools to offer their students between 2 and 4 hours of sporting activities per week outside of normal curriculum time.

MULTI-AGENCY & PARTNERSHIP WORKING

Many schools will develop the core offer of extended services by working in partnership with existing local private or voluntary sector providers or by building on existing links with other local schools and working as a cluster. The key is to think broadly across the community about who might be willing to deliver services or who will benefit and hence might be willing to support a broader range of services based in or around a school site.

LETTINGS

Increase the rental of school premises, both during and out of school hours, for activities such as youth services, adult education, sports and arts, etc to benefit the school, parents, pupils, carers and the wider community.