Who, when, what, where, how?
Before you decide what kind of club you will run or before you apply for funds you need to ask yourself the following questions: why? who? what? when? where? how?
The list below is not exhaustive, but if you have answered all of these points you are well on the way to becoming a sustainable, well planned club.
Why, Who, Where, When, What, How, Top Tips
are we running this breakfast club? Answers might include: to improve enthusiasm for learning, reduce lateness, increase social skills, provide children with a healthy start to the day, improve behaviour, support local families, provide childcare etc.
- is the club for? Consult with parents, pupils, staff and other community members about what they think a club could help with and what they would like to see happening at the club. Decide if there is open access or if you are going to target a particular group or age range.
- is responsible for the planning and updating of the club? Club co-ordinator, steering group, teaching staff, parents, pupils, the community? All of these contributing views will be important. Valuing the opinions of those who contribute views will foster greater enthusiasm for your club by creating a sense of ownership. You won’t be able to please everyone – but try to take care to include a diversity of views.
- will staff the club? Can you involve school kitchen staff or will you use external caterers? Which school staff? What about volunteers, parents and play workers?
- else can help? The police, local healthy living centres, local or regional healthy schools coordinators, community groups, secondary schools, colleges and universities are good places to start.
- will write letters for resources and funding bids? Remember to build in time and resources for essential development work from the start.
- will cover for staff sickness? A pool of willing parents/teachers/community members? Consider what qualifications/criminal record bureau clearance they have.
- do you need to tell about the club? Parents, senior management team, potential members, teachers, the community, governors, Parent Teachers Association etc.
- are you going to hold it? School dining area, school hall, community centre or a classroom?
- will you store the food? Fridge, covered area, cupboards, school kitchens, freezer etc.
- are you going to prepare the food? In the school kitchen or in a temporary preparation area in a classroom?
- will the activities be held? Separately or in the same area as the children are eating? How are these areas defined?
- do children eat? Do they eat and then move on to an activity, and how will you show them that they will be doing this?
- will we find volunteers? Local voluntary service bureaus? Advertise in school newsletter?
- can you find funding or free resources to run your club? Do you need funds for specialist equipment, games, paper, pens, information, health and nutrition advice.
- are we going to start the club? Think about the type of funding you are applying for – you will need to make sure you have access to those funds to pay for the set-up costs before you can start (visit the funding section for more information on funding timescales)
- will we have to think about more funding? Keep records of attendance, expenditure and key events from the start to help with future funding. Start applying for new funding early and have a contingency fund to cover any gaps.
- food will you serve? See the making healthy choices and recipes pages for ideas
- other activities could we run? Reading, writing, history, geography, maths, science, play, arts, crafts etc. Visit the activity section for ideas of how to develop these areas into breakfast club activities.
- are we going to call the breakfast club? Always give your club a name; for example: the Exciting ICT Breakfast Club; the Great Games Breakfast Club; the Cool Crafts Breakfast Club. This gives an impression of a well-planned club with a strong identity and improves your chances of finding funding
- paperwork do we need to manage the club? Food Hygiene certificates, Code of Conduct forms, parental audits, pupil surveys, job descriptions for co-ordinators, pupil registers etc. For template forms and more information see the rules and regulations page and the resources page.
- are we going to do if demand outstrips supply? How many staff members do you have? How many children can you cope with in any one session? How are you going to restrict or extend attendance?
- will your breakfast club achieve? Keeping a record of your club and regularly reviewing progress will help you think about your clubs development and achievements. Don’t be afraid to change things – it’s about making things better not correcting failures
- other clubs are running in the area? Formal childcare or play centres etc.
- kind of organisation is the breakfast club going to be run as? Part of the school? Part of the PTA? A registered charity or voluntary organisation or a company limited by guarantee?
- much is it going to cost? Research costs fully. Break them down clearly so that potential funders can see where their money will be spent. Precise figures show clear calculations - use them instead of rounding up
- will you buy the food? Will a supermarket deliver it? Will someone visit the local shops the night before?
- are you going to tell people about the club? In the school newsletter, on posters, in memos, through local radio announcements, in press releases, on a website?
- is your breakfast club going to be different from the rest of the school day? Do you need a set of rules or a code of conduct for the club? How are you going to establish boundaries?
- will you know that your club has been a success? Photos are a great record – remember to obtain consent forms. Will you use member/community feedback forms? If your club activity is linked to raising achievement, how will you measure this? Remember that most funders will want at least a short report at the end of the funding year
- are you going to encourage attendance? Some suggestions are: reward certificates for 95 per cent attendance, an end-of-term prize for good attendance, regular newsletters, promotion of the club as an integral part of the school
- are your members going to get to your breakfast club? Walking bus/school transport etc.
Top tips
- Start simply – it’s much easier to build in new ideas once your core foundations are established.
- Charge from the beginning – if you are planning to charge for the club. Any surplus money can be saved to support gaps between funding or building in extra activities. Introducing fees at a later stage can put off regular members. To find out more and to get specific information on charging for your breakfast club, visit our charging page.
- Operate a sliding scale of costs for families – this stops the costs mounting for big families and encourages siblings to get involved.
- Plan for administration, development and training time in your staffing costs. These are essential to sustaining a club but are often overlooked or undervalued.
