Agenda item

This report provides an update on the current Extended Schools Review.

Those Members who attended, provided feedback on their visit to the two After School Clubs at Westfield School, including information on cost, access to and use of school resources, staffing, numbers and age range of children accessing both provisions and the relationship with parents, the school and each other. 

Officers from Extended Services agreed that the comments from the Members who had visited the services reflected their picture of the provision, and the Scrutiny Officer agreed to feed the detailed information in the draft final report.

In regard to the parents survey, Members thanked officers for their thorough analysis of the results and noted:

·               that Fulford Primary was in fact St. Oswald’s

·               of those parents not using childcare or out of school activities, the highest number, though not the majority of respondents, gave cost as a reason 

·               the At home/Prefer to do it myself and Use friends/Family support categories could be seen together as one reason

·               the lack of childcare was reported by 19% of respondents as a reason for preventing parents going to work. It was noted that support might be needed to make this work with some element of cluster provision.

·               some activities required payment for specialist teachers, whereas other courses/activities may have been subsidised.

·               some activities might only be deliverable on a cluster provision basis. The Chair commented that if funding could be provided at one school under clustering that this could help subsidise activities at another school with fewer resources.

·               in regard to those parents who perhaps could not afford to take advantage of the provision, Officers stated that new funding of £80,000, though small for the York area, would be made available in a pilot for 2009/10 with funding from 1 April 2009 for pupils in receipt of free school meals. However, this funding might not go beyond 2011.

Officers confirmed that the household income data matched CIS, and that the average costs per week were taken from the survey responses.

Members requested the Assistant Director of Partnership & Early Intervention attend the next meeting to talk about the above, and provide information on ESRA, the Disadvantaged Pathfinder and what could be done to help schools focus (although it was noted that funds had already been allocated to schools for the next financial year).

Members considered the information on Extended Services, provided by New Earswick Primary School, Elvington Church of England Primary School and Scarcroft School, and instructed the Scrutiny Officer to write and thank the schools on behalf of the Chair, and to praise New Earswick Primary School on the quality of information they were providing to parents. ¹

Finally, Members agreed to provide the Scrutiny Officer with their comments on the Consultation Event to be held at the Mansion House following the meeting, and their suggestions for recommendations arising from the review, to enable them to be fed into the draft final report.

RESOLVED:            

(i)         That the report be noted

(ii)        That the Assistant Director of Partnership & Early Intervention be invited to attend the next meeting of the Committee ²

(iii)       That Members provide comments on the consultation event and suggested recommendations to the Scrutiny Officer for inclusion in the draft final report

REASON:

To ensure work can proceed as planned for this review while complying with scrutiny procedures, protocols and workplans.