Warwickshire wins extended praise
Warwickshire County Council is leading the way when it comes to helping schools extending the amount of services that they offer.
The county has been picked for a national pilot scheme showcasing the way that a number of different organisations can work together.
New partnerships are being formed across the county to allow many different services operating within a community to work together. The pilot workshops, planned by the Training and Development Agency, help everyone involved locally to prepare themselves and identify what part they will play in delivering new services.
Warwickshire is one of a small number of local authorities chosen to pilot the workshops. The workshop will bring together community organisations and agencies this Friday, 5 May, at the HTI Centre in Coventry.
The aim is to make schools the hub of neighbourhood life, by offering far more than traditional lessons.
Offering access to childcare from 8am to 6pm is one of the main aims of the Extended Schools scheme, which has been introduced by the government.
Schools also have to offer a variety of activities, such as homework clubs, study support, music, arts and drama, and open up their facilities to the community.
An extended school would also offer support to parents, such as information, parenting programmes and family learning. It would also be a place where someone could go to find out how to access specialist services.
Warwickshire County Council has played a pivotal role in bringing schools, voluntary services, the police, health bodies and borough and district councils to work together.
It has been recognised by the Training and Development Agency for Schools as a model for excellence and is just one of a small number of authorities selected for a pilot scheme to discover how to help these partnerships can come to fruition.
A conference is bringing together people from organisations all over the county to plan the next steps forward.
Carol Bunyard, Extended Schools Strategy Officer for Warwickshire County Council, said: “The aim of Extended Schools is to put services that people need at the heart of their community. Schools won’t necessarily be running all these services and it is vital to have everyone who works in a particular area working together to bring about the best results. Warwickshire has been recognised for the way it has started on this challenge and we have to continue that momentum and build on the partnerships we have created.”