Extended services

Services and activities for children and families at the heart of the community

Schools, located as they are right at the heart of the community, are ideally placed to provide integrated services for children and young people in line with the government's Every Child Matters objectives of ensuring that children stay safe, are healthy, enjoy and achieve, make a positive contribution and achieve economic wellbeing. (DfES)

The Government intends for all children and their families to have access to a core of extended services by 2010.

An extended school provides a range of services and activities, beyond the school day, to help meet the needs of children, their families and the wider community.

Extended services and activities can be organised and delivered directly by school staff, and/or by schools working in partnership with existing local private or voluntary sector providers, via school clusters and/or by third parties. While many schools may choose to develop an even richer mix of services and activities, the core offer for mainstream and special schools is: 

• high-quality childcare provided on the school site or other local providers, with supervised transfer arrangements where appropriate, available 8am – 6pm all year round 
  Early Years   
  Childrens Information Service 
  
  
• a varied programme of activities to be on offer, such as homework clubs and study support, sport (at least two hours a week beyond the school day for those who want it), music tuition, dance and drama, arts and crafts, special interest clubs such as chess and first aid courses, learning a foreign language, volunteering, business and enterprise activities 
  Youth Service  
  Providing Sporting and Study Support Activites through Extended Services (pdf)
  
  
• parenting support including information sessions for parents at key transition points, parenting programmes run with the support of other children's services and family learning sessions to allow children to learn with their parents 
  Providing Support to Parents and Carers through Extended Services (pdf)  
  
  
• swift and easy access to a wide range of specialist support services such as speech therapy, child and adolescent mental health services, family support services, intensive behaviour support, and (for young people) sexual health services.  By 2007 all schools in conjuction with the local authority must have in place a procedure for accessing appropriate interventions and services.  
  Common Assessment Framework 
  
  
• community access to ICT, sports and arts facilities, including adult learning for the wider community outside of the school day.      
  
  
• Extended Services Directory 2008 (pdf 2.7mb)
  The provision of information is key in meeting the objectives of the core offer and also plays an important part in helping schools and other agencies ‘signpost’ children, young people and their families to activities and services. With this is mind, the Hammersmith & Fulham Extended Services team in partnership with the borough Children's Information Service have produced a directory which highlights services accessible from Hammersmith & Fulham schools and partner agencies.  

In Hammersmith & Fulham Phase one has focused on the south of the borough and has seen the development of 14 schools in the borough providing access to the full core offer.

Phase two is being delivered in the north of the borough and we aim to support, advise and assist in funding an additional 17 schools to deliver the core offer by 2007.

Phase three will concentrate on the remaining schools across the borough to ensure all schools are either delivering or providing access to the core offer by 2010.

To find out more contact the Extended Services Remodeling Advisor on 020 8753 3990 or email: helen.bowring@lbhf.gov.uk