Advice for library services staff in local authorities

Strategy guide Meeting your strategic goals in England through study support Advice for library services staff in local authorities Library services are always facing challenges over how to to secure the best for the young people in their areas, and how to meet the objectives of strategies such as the Framework for the Future. But funds are limited, and identifying the most effective ways of tackling key issues can be confusing. Study support (also known as out-of-school-hours learning or oshl, or extended, informal or extra learning) is a single approach that can help you meet these objectives. It offers informal, imaginative ways to help pupils learn by participating in clubs, group activities and community projects. Study support benefits children in many ways, such as boosting their enthusiasm for reading, reducing behavioural problems, raising attainment and increasing motivation and self-esteem. The government recognises that study support and informal learning can make an important contribution to educational strategies, including the development of extended services, the 8 to 6 agenda and remodelling. It increasingly wants to see schools and local authorities working together to embed study support firmly within their development plans for extended services. Ofsted already inspects schools’ study support provision and, increasingly, under its common inspection schedule for schools and other post-16 provision (2005), study support will be inspected in the context of schools’ extended services and Every Child Matters. This guide is designed to help you meet your Framework for the Future objectives by incorporating study support into your library service work. It will show you how study support can add value to the support that you give young people. About study support What is study support? Study support can include: • breakfast clubs – providing nutrition, a sociable atmosphere and learning opportunities, and leading to improved attendance and concentration levels • homework clubs – help with homework in a calm, informal atmosphere • subject-based activities – such as reading or science clubs • creative activities – such as play writing and drama workshops • physical education and sports – working on areas from numeracy to behaviour improvement or healthy schools, through physical activity. Study support activities are a key part of the ‘core offer’ of extended school services, which the government wants all schools to provide access to by 2010. Visit www.continyou.org.uk/8to6 for ideas and practical information about how library services can work more closely with schools to develop, run and sustain study support activities as part of their extended services between 8am and 6pm. The benefits of study support Many evaluations of study support have shown that it can help raise standards, improve behaviour and attendance, encourage parental and community involvement, and tackle social exclusion. It can help raise attainment for all students, and can be especially helpful for those with particular needs. The relaxed out-of-class atmosphere can help teachers or other staff engage with children who are very shy, for example, and can also include parents or carers. Study support can also support the remodelling agenda, as non-teaching staff can run many activities. This boosts their professional development and frees up teacher time. The grid on the next page shows how study support can help you meet the key elements of the Framework for the Future action plan. To find out more about study support evaluations, visit: www.standards.dfes. gov.uk/studysupport and www.continyou.org.uk/onlinereference . Study support can improve pupils’ attitudes to learning Study support recognises the connection between children’s educational achievements and what they learn through their informal pastimes when these are linked to core learning and activities in their classrooms and communities. A key point about study support programmes is that they are strategically designed to focus on meeting the learning needs of individual pupils by, for example, tackling issues such as exclusion and low self-esteem through a carefully targeted approach. Children can be involved at every level of study support: deciding which activities will take place, choosing what to participate in, and being consulted about how the activities or schemes are run. This increases their learning opportunities. How is study support funded? As well as using library service funding, you can also work with schools to find funds for study support within the School Development Grant. In addition, the most recent school funding arrangements include other sources that offer schools the potential of working with local authorities to provide ‘a varied menu of study support’ as part of their extended services. To find out more, visit www.teachernet.gov.uk/management/schoolfunding or www.teachernet.gov.uk/wholeschool/extendedschools . How does study support help library service co-ordinators? As a library service co-ordinator, you can help develop and sustain study support activities in libraries that will contribute towards achieving your targets in relation to the Framework for the Future action plan developed by the Museums, Libraries and Archives (MLA) Council. The action plan sets out the government’s vision for transforming English public libraries over the next ten years into centres of knowledge and creativity. So you might support activities in schools that link study support for particular groups of children with libraries, or you may find ways of incorporating libraries and study support into a range of different strategic objectives in education and in other areas, such as crime prevention or health. Overall, the benefits of study support activities can be fed back into whole-school provision and therefore provide many opportunities to raise pupils’ achievements, aspirations, motivation and self-esteem. How does study support fit with the Framework for the Future action plan? Key elements of Framework for the Future action plan How study support fits with these elements or complements them Building capacity to deliver transformation Informal, innovative study support activities can help develop the role and contribution of public libraries. Such activities can promote libraries as comfortable and interesting places for young people to be. Study support engages staff in new activities, developing their skills and boosting their continuing professional development. Through strategic planning and rigorous evaluation of study support activities, libraries can clearly how it benefits their broader aims. And, by working in close partnership with schools and other stakeholders, libraries can ensure that they are not delivering study support in isolation. Books, reading and learning By devising enjoyable and informal learning activities, libraries can work with schools to attract young people who are otherwise hard to engage, and can find new ways of promoting literacy skills and helping young people to develop a passion for reading and learning. As part of the 8 to 6 agenda, they are well placed to offer enhanced reading and homework support out of school hours. Digital citizenship Libraries can offer a key service to young people, especially those from deprived areas. They can provide access to ICT, and offer internet and computer access, which can be a successful way of engaging them. Study support can include family learning in literacy and ICT (which enables students and their parents or carers to learn together), with a range of benefits. This opens up new opportunities for families, while helping libraries to achieve their UK online targets for service take-up and audience engagement. Community and civic values Library services can offer targeted study support activities designed to meet a range of social needs. By working jointly with study support teams, schools, youth services, mental health teams and other partners, libraries can design programmes of activity that will boost social inclusion and help build cohesive communities. By asking young people what they want, and providing activities in a space and atmosphere that is designed with them in mind, libraries can reach young people and offer them access to skills and resources that interest them. Case studies Boosting social inclusion St Helens St Helens Library Service identifies how study support can meet a range of its corporate strategic objectives, one of which is to boost social inclusion. In four economically and socially disadvantaged areas of St Helens, the Library Service aims to raise attainment and self-esteem among pupils at risk of disaffection by providing study support. Some young people prefer to attend activities away from school, so the activities are held in libraries and community centres that have flexible opening hours. Partnership working has been a key to the success of the scheme. Teachers, library staff, the Library Service, community development managers and centre managers have all contributed, along with the Foster Care Team, which uses the scheme to engage looked-after children and foster carers. The scheme offers young people between the ages of 7 and 16 a range of educational activities that are intended to feel more like ‘fun’ than ‘learning’. These might include activities such as making Egyptian masks or celebrating the Chinese New Year. Schools refer students to the scheme, promote the project and help library staff to evaluate pupils progress and achievements. The project has also expanded to support a GCSE exam revision programme for Key Stage 4 students on Saturday mornings. One participant is an asylum seeker who uses the project for extra help with English. She explains: ‘I like coming to the library because, in school, the teacher often goes too fast and I find it difficult to understand. This project helps me a lot to learn the language and the curriculum.’ St Helens Library Service’s work with young people tackles these Framework for the Future strategic objectives: • Building capacity to deliver transformation • Books, reading and learning • Digital citizenship • Community and civic values. The effect The project has developed an excellent reputation within schools and the local community. It has resulted in improvements in ICT, literacy, numeracy, research and information skills, key skills and the development of independent learning. Children gain a sense of achievement, which raises their confidence and self-esteem. It also improves their communication skills and prepares them for lifelong learning. Library-based homework centres Enfield It’s just before 4pm on a Monday afternoon and already a queue of children waits to enter Edmonton Green Library’s Homework Centre – one of four homework centres located in Enfield’s libraries. The children come to the homework centres from schools all over the borough, drawn by the comprehensive range of books, as well as internet access and trained staff who help young people with their homework assignments. Three of the centres are located in areas of significant deprivation, and hundreds of young people living, or at school, in the area regularly spend their evenings there, working independently and in groups. Funding from the Prince’s Trust helped set up the first centre in order to combat low attainment, and its success convinced the local authority to set up others. The Enfield Library Service has an open-door policy, but actively promotes its service to pupils from Years 5 to 11, especially to those who need to take more responsibility for their own learning. The Library Service also focuses on the needs of refugee communities through special projects, and on the needs of young people in public care. More recently, the Library Service has worked with Youth Services, which runs a programme placing sixth-form volunteers in library homework centres to act as study mentors to younger pupils. Enfield Library Service’s homework centres tackle these Framework for the Future strategic objectives: • Building capacity to deliver transformation • Books, reading and learning • Digital citizenship • Community and civic values. The effect Enfield’s Homework Centres recently achieved ‘established’ status under the Quality in Study Support (QiSS) recognition scheme. Homework Centre Assistant Kathy Nolde says: ‘The students who attend our centres do so because they want to, not because they have to – and this makes all the difference. New students are made to feel very welcome by other students, which encourages them to return. There are many students who have limited reference books and no PCs at home. These students have benefited enormously, and feedback from parents has always been positive.’ Chatterbooks club Staffordshire ‘Amazing’ and ‘fun’ are how Year 6 students from Park Middle School describe their experience of the Chatterbooks reading club, run by the local Library Service. Staffordshire piloted the national Reading Agency initiative in 2002, and ran the scheme as a launch pad for traditional reading groups. Since its early days, the club has developed into an animated family learning activity, which children and their parents find stimulating and fun. The two-hour sessions are held weekly over six weeks, either in schools or in the library. In the first hour, the children play a memory game to help them concentrate, followed by some fun with reading exercises. Later, parents and carers join in for games related to the learning activity, working in teams with other families. The same staff (one teacher and one member of the Library Service) attend all six sessions. This helps them get to know the children and offer tailored support. ‘Initially, we had to do presentations to promote the service,’ says Schools Library Service Development Manager Lisa Westmorland. ‘Now, there’s a lot more awareness of what’s involved, and it’s the schools who approach us. We go in and have a meeting with them to make sure they’re clear about what they can get out of it, and what we can get out of it.’ Staffordshire Library Service’s Chatterbooks clubs tackle these Framework for the Future strategic objectives: • Building capacity to deliver transformation • Books, reading and learning • Community and civic values. The effect The schools find that the club increases family participation and involvement in the children’s learning. The children develop confidence in reading and in using the library. The parents benefit from feeling involved in their child’s learning and meeting other parents and teaching staff in an informal environment. The Library Service benefits from increased numbers of visits, and receives beneficial feedback from the schools – it has the chance to show schools the full range of its stock and get ideas for new stock. All the schools that have taken part have since requested more sessions. A joint approach Newcastle Libraries and Information Service In Newcastle, the Library Service has been embedded in every aspect of the lives of children and young people. The service encourages people to read, from six months through to adulthood and works with a broad range of partners including Sure Start, the health service and Job Centre Plus. Once children reach school age, they have access to a range of after-school and holiday activities run through the libraries, such as the national Summer Reading Challenge and Chatterbooks clubs. Plans are also under way to provide study support with the Newcastle Football Club learning centre. Older students are involved in shaping the Library Service by helping to design the new city library and choosing new stock. The service benefits from a designated library person who is responsible for raising the profile of the library among schools. ‘Sometimes schools need some gentle persuasion, and it’s good to have someone to link in with the appropriate advisors to talk about what we can offer them,’ explains Janice Hall, Access to Learning Manager. The Library Service is part of the Education and Libraries directorate and the teams work together closely, participating in strategic planning groups including the Early Years and Development Partnership, the Children’s and Young People’s Partnership and the Newcastle Learning Partnership. The Library Service plans, markets and evaluates activities with partners represented on these groups, which include the family learning and health services. Both the latter services provide access to families who may benefit from Library Service support. ‘Our work is embedded strategically,’ says Janice. ‘A lot of our work fits in with Framework for the Future, and now all the services we link in with are working to other shared agendas, such as Every Child Matters, so we’re all pulling together. We can use evaluations to create more impact, so that’s why other stakeholders work with us – they see how our activities help them meet their objectives. They see the benefit of them.’ Newcastle Library Service’s partnership work tackles these Framework for the Future strategic objectives: • Building capacity to deliver transformation • Books, reading and learning • Digital citizenship • Community and civic values. The effect The Library Service uses its study support activities to promote reading and highlight its importance among children and their families. By bringing children and their parents/carers into the libraries, it can raise awareness of the library as a public resource that is available to the whole community. Through joint working with other stakeholders, the service can draw on funding from a range of sources to help fulfil young people’s potential across the board. Where to now... What you can do next • Contact the study support or out-of-school-hours learning co-ordinator at your local authority. Alternatively, talk to the extended schools team in your authority, as the team may include a study support co-ordinator. • Include study support activities in your library strategy plans. • Find out what study support activities the schools in your area already provide and how these can complement your library strategy plans. • Consider how community partners could add value to your library work with schools. • Support your library staff by providing information and training on how study support works in schools. • Host a workshop for headteachers to discuss how to develop study support and best practice that supports the use of libraries. Useful websites and resources ContinYou supports the strategic development of study support activities in schools, local authorities and their communities. ContinYou’s Extra Time services include the 8 to 6 online resource; the new Schools ETC (Extending to Communities) subscription magazine, which will have an advice sheet in each issue; and the ‘Seeing is Believing’ network, which will keep key local authority staff up to date with the latest developments relating to extending school services and study support. Visit www.continyou.org.uk/extratime or telephone 020 8709 9900. Department for Education and Skills Study Support Team – www.standards.dfes.gov.uk/studysupport/ Literacy Trust – www.literacytrust.org.uk Museums, Libraries and Archives Council – www.mla.gov.uk Quality in Study Support (QISS) – www.qiss.org.uk Reading Agency – www.readingagency.org.uk teachernet – www.teachernet.gov.uk University of the First Age (UFA) – www.ufa.org.uk Other countries Scotland School Library Resource Services in Scotland – www.culturalprofiles.org.uk Scottish Executive National Priorities in Education – www.nationalpriorities.org.uk Scottish Study Support Network – Tel: 0141 950 3186 or 01968 678 985 Northern Ireland Northern Ireland Department of Education – www.deni.gov.uk School Libraries of the Future Project Northern Ireland – http://atschool. eduweb.co.uk/tinneny Wales CyMAL: Museums, Archives and Libraries Wales – www.cymal.wales.gov.uk National Assembly of Wales (children and young people pages) – www.wales.gov.uk/subichildren/index.htm International International Association of School Librarians – www.iasl-slo.org Publications Building excellent schools together, download from www.wales.gov.uk Building the future of learning, Big Lottery Fund, 2004 Extended schools: access to opportunities and services for all – a prospectus, DfES, 2005 Framework for the future: libraries, learning and information in the next decade, Department for Culture Media and Sport, 2003 Study support code of practice (England), DfES, 2004 A third space for learning: the future of study support/out-of-school hours learning, Demos report, 2005 This publication was researched and written by Eleanor Stanley, (www.eleanorstanley.co.uk) and Jenny Evans (jennyevans66@btinternet.com). It was edited by Paddy O’Dea (ContinYou) and desk-top published by Christine Knight (ContinYou). Special thanks to Tony Kirwin of Quality in Study Support (QiSS) for invaluable advice. Extra Time Strategy guides are published by ContinYou, a charity dedicated to building learning communities and promoting lifelong learning. ContinYou produces a variety of publications that support people working in the field of study support. Strategy guides are free and can be downloaded from www.continyou.org.uk . Find out more from ContinYou: 17 Old Ford Road, London E2 9PJ Tel: 020 8709 9900 Fax: 020 8709 9933 Email: info.london@continyou.org.uk Website: www.continyou.org.uk A registered charity: number 1097596