A Children’s Centres for every Community Every Child Matters: 5 Outcomes Safe, Healthy, Achieve and Enjoy, Positive Contribution, Economic Wellbeing

Children’s Centres What are they? Why do we need them? How many in Gloucestershire? What will they offer? How will we run them?

What is a Children’s Centre? More than just a building ………….

Network of centres across the country providing a range of services for children 0 –5 and their families serving a reach area of approx 800 children. Services will not be the same everywhere because needs and communities vary greatly. The greatest resources for children’s centres will go to those children most in need. They will be permanent mainstream community services, which are developed and delivered with active involvement of parents/carers and the local community. Children’s Centres – what are they?

Support our most vulnerable children Joining up services, education, social care and health Improve outcomes for all children – safe, healthy, enjoying & achieving, economic wellbeing and making a positive contribution Bringing together services at neighbourhood level, statutory, voluntary, independent and private Supporting parents/carers in their parenting and aspirations towards employment Developing universal services for every child Children’s Centres – Why do we need them?

Children’s Centres in Gloucestershire? 9 centres open and delivering services by more will be open by March 2008 Further 9 by 2010 Total of 40 centres

What will a Children’s Centre Offer ? 30% Model childcare and early years provision a childminder network parenting education and family support education, training & employment services health services access to wider services 70% Model information on childcare and early years provision information and support to access wider services information and advice to parents support to childminders drop in sessions links to job centre plus and family health services

Opportunities Shared use of buildings and extended opening hours for children and family activities Sharing staff skills, training and development Further develop partnership working Focus on hard to engage children A universal access point for children age 0-19 and their families Improved outcomes for children

How will we run them? Clustering centres together Decide on the budgets Develop Partnership Boards Accountability – who holds the budgets and employs the staff?

Why Cluster Arrangements? Government guidance recommendation To make the best use of funding To enable centres to share specialist workers To reach the most isolated children To allow a number of centres to work together, to provide access to full core services

Deciding on the Budgets 3 Year funding release to March 2011 Funding Framework determines level of funding for each centre Rural weighting Funding examples – Phase 1 400k Phase 3 35k

Developing Partnership Boards Representation of all stakeholders including parents, public sector, private, voluntary and independent sector Provide support and challenge Monitor and manage performance Ensure services meet local need Consultation is taking place to determine the framework

Accountability Decisions have yet to be made We need a process Interim arrangements will be a school or the Local Authority for 2 years We need to review arrangements when centres are open Performance Framework almost complete A reporting framework needs to be developed

For further information ‘Governance Guidance for Sure Start Children’s Centres and Extended Schools’ Shape Area Managers Lin Sergeant (Chelt/Tewks) Karen Watson (Glos/Forest) Sally Hebbs (Stroud/Cots)

Questions?