What to Consider When Planning an After-School Club

The Department for Education (DfE) are expanding wrap around care for children in primary schools, aiming to increase the number of places available to support working families. This means that schools need to be prepared for a potential uplift in parents taking up an after-school provision place, but also reviewing their current situation and what they offer to families.

After-school clubs usually run before the school day starts and when it finishes, on average until 6pm in the evening. There are many considerations to think about that are different to a usual classroom setting, due to the timings and location of the after-school club. It is important to note that all parents in England who have their child registered in a school have the right to request wraparound care if it is not already provided. This is different to an activity after school, for example football club, which may run less frequently and only for a short period of time. What do you need to consider when putting together after-school provision?

1. First aid

After school provision is usually run separately to a classroom setting, which means that teaching staff are not normally involved. Therefore, you will need a different set of staff who are qualified to work with children, and at least one who has a first aid certificate. This is especially important as after school clubs deal with food, which brings up issues such as allergies. A first aider needs to be on duty at all times, which means rotas need to be planned carefully, or alternatively all staff trained as first aiders. Once that is sorted, the provision needs to have easy access to first aid kits and communication with the rest of the school if there is an emergency.

2. Catering and food

Due to the long hours of after school clubs, they need to provide breakfast and dinner for children, to make sure they are having food at their normal time. This can throw up issues for schools, as there needs to be access to catering facilities, for example an oven or microwave. You also need staff who are willing to cook, or at least to heat up food. It is important that children are given a substantial meal, in case they won’t eat again when they get home. Try and vary the food given each day, or produce a menu so that children know in advance what they are going to have. If you are feeling particularly adventurous, you could introduce cooking activities, but maybe not every day…

3. Location

The location of your after-school club is something that needs to be considered carefully. Is it near catering facilities, so that food can be cooked whilst still able to supervise children? Is it a big enough space so there is room for different activities? Is there access to outdoor space, such as a playground? Your after school club also needs to have easy access for parents to enter and pick up their children, ideally without going through the whole school building, to avoid any safeguarding issues. This will need careful planning- an after-school club should also ideally be away from classrooms where meetings may be happening, so information can be kept confidential.

4. Interesting activities

After-school clubs can last for a few hours, so children need to have activities to keep them entertained. Ideally, they won’t be looking at screens the whole time, but it is hard to come up with ideas every day that are new and interesting. It could be that they are allowed to complete their homework, to help relieve pressure on parents in the evenings, or do some revision for upcoming tests. There should be books that children can read, or access to the library, as well as activities that can be created quickly, such as drawing or colouring. Celebrating different festivals or events can also be a nice touch, for example an Easter egg hunt or making a Mother’s Day card. It is also worth checking the budget for an after-school club, to see what money you have available.

5. Clear policies and procedures

Before starting an after-school club, there need to be clear policies put in place, so that boundaries are set with parents and they know the rules. In particular, when children need to be collected and what happens if a parent is late to pick up. For example, if the after-school club finishes at 6pm, then all children need to be collected at that point, unless there is an emergency situation. Parents should be given a lateness procedure document before they sign up, so they know what the rules are and what will happen if they don’t comply. If everything is clear at the beginning, it should reduce any problems going forward.

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