OUT OF SCHOOL HOURS LEARNING

The Out of School Hours programme took place in 12 Leeds and Manchester schools. Most are based in inner city. The schools used the programme to combat dissatisfaction, truancy and underachievement, and to retain gifted and talented pupils.        

Despite initial scepticism that young people aged 11-16 from disadvantaged communities would attend after school provision, CAPE UK’s pilot studies showed that through demanding out of school activity:

• young people in target groups engage positively with creative activities
• pupils reluctant to come to school or switched off learning have been successfully re-engaged

Our Objectives were to set up programmes which enabled children and young people to :

• develop the key skills of team work, problem solving and communication
• support learning in key curriculum areas such as literacy, ICT, design, technology, science and citizenship
• increase the confidence and motivation of young people
• ensure that outcomes and the skills learnt fed back into school-time learning and impacted on attendance, completion of coursework and exam results
• develop young people’s responsibility by allowing them to take responsibility within creative projects
• develop young people’s leadership skills
• give young people an insight into the world of work

We also wanted to use the out of school learning space and time to give teachers the opportunity to experiment and experience different approaches to teaching and learning that they could adapt and bring into their mainstream teaching. We wanted to :

• increase the understanding of and commitment to creative approaches to teaching and learning among staff
• network schools, sharing the process and the outcomes
• add to CAPE UK’s ongoing research into the nature and application of creativity in education

Each school chose their own emphasis and way of working, identifying target groups according to local needs and the school’s development plan.

They each worked with creative professionals who brought both their practical experience and the particular standards of their profession into the school.

Many of the projects gave young people leadership challenges, older children introducing younger children to skills such as music, dance and radio production.

The majority of the schools were already part of the CAPE UK initiative. At the planning stage the CAPE Co-ordinator in each school consulted the young people themselves, relevant departments, senior management, governors and, where possible, PTAs. LEAs were informed and supportive. CAPE UK provided advice and support, networking opportunities, managed the grant, collected the data from schools, compiled and submitted the NOF reports, provided a regional advisor in Leeds and in Manchester.

The CAPE UK/NOF projects took place over a three year period; we have highlighted just one from each school on this site.

CAPE UK’s vision is for a society in which people employ their creative capacities to actively meet the challenges of the future. CAPE is a research and development agency focusing on creativity and learning.

CAPE draws together and distils learning and ideas; initiates communities of inquiry to generate and share ideas and practice; collaborates with national and international networks and agencies

The New Opportunities Fund (NOF) delivers programmes across the UK that are designed to improve the quality of life for people and communities, address disadvantage, encourage family participation and complement Government strategies. NOF merged with the Community Fund in 2004 to become the Big Lottery Fund.

During the three years of the Out of School Hour Programme we have worked with 3,322 young people, over one hundred teachers and advisors, and 90 creative professionals.

The programme has been successful in terms of endorsing the findings of CAPE UK’s pilot studies - that through demanding out of school activity:

• young people in target groups engage positively with creative activities
• pupils reluctant to come to school or switched off learning have been successfully re-engaged

We have also achieved the objectives we set ourselves.