Early Years and Childcare: Local Authority Developing Practice – Pathfinders Implementation Toolkit Step 3: Engaging with Schools

This Toolkit Step 3, the third in a series of four, is to support local authorities to deal with the challenges faced when developing partnerships with schools in order to implement the flexible free entitlement for early years provision. 

Implementing the free entitlement explores how local authorities are working towards the requirement to ensure that from 2010 the parents of all three and four year olds have free access to 15 hours per week flexible early years provision.

The changes to the extended free entitlement are being rolled out gradually across the country. 20 pathfinder authorities will implement the new system from April 2007. This group will be joined by a further 14 local authorities from September 2008.

The toolkit can be used in order, or selected according to need:

Toolkit Step 1 Project Planning (select to access contents)

Toolkit Step 2 Assessing Demand (select to access contents)

Toolkit Step 3 Engaging with Schools

Toolkit Step 4 Delivering Flexibility and Communicating with Parents (select to access contents)

Contents of Toolkit Step 3 Engaging with Schools

• Engaging Schools Sheffield Case Study
  A case study from Sheffield describing their engagement with the maintained sector in delivering the extended flexible offer.
  
  
• Engaging Schools Notes
  These notes, from a presentation at a Pathfinder Conference, summarise the challenges faced when engaging with schools.
  
  
• Engaging Schools Letter
  A letter describing the experiences of a head teacher in Rochdale in delivering the extended offer.
  
  
• Engaging Schools Blackpool Case Study
  A case study illustrating how Blackpool encouraged schools with maintained nursery classes to offer the extended flexible provision. It may also help head teachers to focus on how to increase take up.