Successes
The follow-up review identified further evidence of pupils benefiting from the AEBSD intervention. During the autumn and winter months, pupil benefits included:
- Access to safe spaces with lighting, shelter, warm areas and organised activity provision outside of school hours;
- New clubs established with single and multi-sport activities, providing more choice and access to a variety of sports otherwise not available, including new opportunities to take part during school holidays;
- Enabling pupils from different schools and year groups to mix, supporting the development of social skills. Positive feedback from pupils included comments around fun and enjoyment, making new friends, feeling calmer and learning new skills;
- Pupils introduced to community providers in a familiar space – providing access to additional non-teacher adult role models with different skills, expertise and interests. This can help establish trusted relationships and remove a hurdle to pupils’ future engagement in community-based and sports club sessions;
- An increased focus on inclusion through facility developments, which created new accessible, appropriate facilities for female, disabled and LGBTQ+ pupils; and
- Encouraging previously inactive children to get involved in physical activity and to stay involved.
Interviewees provided feedback on the perceived educational and community benefits of the pilot:
- Offering young people in the local community (not just pupils) something to do in a safe space and reducing risk of antisocial behaviour;
- Increased engagement with parents though the pilot, with anecdotal feedback from teachers and parents on improved behaviour including better engagement during curricular time and better behaviour at home;
- School staff perceived there had been improvements in their relationship with parents. The extended school day offer supports those parents who are at work or have other commitments; and
- New/developing relationships and collaborations with other schools, and with various local authority departments and national governing bodies who can assist in sourcing quality providers and delivering and coordinating local provision. This also offers opportunities for community providers and enterprises to reach new audiences.
Challenges
The main challenges related to staff capacity and a lack of continued funding to benefit from the input of external providers. Smaller schools found it particularly difficult to continue, having fewer members of staff available who might volunteer. Sustainability of certain elements of the pilot provision is therefore difficult without funding to:
- Pay for additional staff capacity to open and close facilities after school and at weekends;
- Free up staff time to coordinate and communicate the offer; and
- Cover provider costs longer term so that subsided sessions take place. The cost of the sessions plus kit and equipment and travel can be a significant barrier to families.
Some elements of the pilot will of course have lasting effects, such as the improvements to facilities, the additional equipment purchased and the relationships and collaborations formed. All the case study schools covered in this update could maintain some aspects of their project. However, further development and scalability was unlikely without further funding, especially to ability to continue to resource community providers to introduce and develop a range of activities that meets the needs of a diverse range of pupils.
