Extended schools are failing to provide care for the children who may need it the most, according to research.

Yet another senario where parents do not get enough information about how little actual supervision their children are getting in breakfast clubs, etc. If you want your child cared for properly before and after school you have to use a childminder. Extended school services provide certain activities for your child for little or no cost but you get what you pay for!!

I'm concerned about the language that is being used here. Extended services in school is not the same as childcare. The Childcare Act 2006 says that LA's should not provide childcare directly unless there is no other provider and that schools/LA's should work in partnership with the PVI sector, by the Government saying it wants all primary schools to be providing childcare, rather than saying providing extended services, it is actually contravening the Childcare Act 2006 as schools are part of the LA. In Leicestershire we are encouraging schools to work with the PVI sector and not to set up childcare themselves. Ensuring sufficiency of high quality of childcare in a free market economy along with ensuring choice and affordability for parents is a very difficult balance.

Lets just remind readers that many primary schools provide a before and after school-care fascility. These clubs are run by professionals and the service parents receive for their children is excellent.Supervision is set by Ofsted ratios 1:8 adult to child ratio's and they must adhere to the standards set by Ofsted. After school activities which are set by the school are totally different and supervision is often poor.

I believe that what Michelle says is correct; schools should indeed work in partnership with childminders and other agencies in order to provide a wrap around service. If I understand correctly, Extended Schools is about making schools the hub of the community in which they are located, nonetheless as a child practitioner and as a mother of a five year old child, I have not seen this happening and whatever has been put in place is not significant enough to strike an impact on the ECM targets.

Effective multiagency work is a challenge for organisations and in many occasions  some of them unfortunately focus on the complexity of its nature rather than on the extremely favorable advantages that it produces. I think schools are frightened to explore this avenue and should be given more support to overcome this in order to provide effective extended school services and achieve their targets.