Gateshead mums and dads who are struggling to balance their working life with their parenting responsibilities no longer need to worry. People in the local community who recognise the difficulty in picking up children from school when they have a full time job, have set up out of school clubs across the borough to help make life easier for parents.
Three new clubs are now operating as social enterprises, set up with the support of Gateshead Council’s Economic Development Service and the Early Years and Childcare Services:
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High Hopes Out of School Club;
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Washingwell Out of School Club;
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Whickham Out of School Club.
The clubs provide parents of more than 100 children an after school service enabling them to work full time, safe in the knowledge that their children will be looked after until six pm.
Most recently opened, High Hopes is based at Highfield Primary School. Manager Eleanor Borrowdale contacted Gateshead Council late last year after parents at High Hopes nursery, where she is also manager, showed interest in having such a service in the area.
Gateshead Council’s Economic Development Service has supported the group to become constituted and form their own committee of parents who will help to run the organisation and given advice and support with clarifying employee roles and responsibilities, employment contracts, maternity policies and redundancy policies. The team is also providing support to fund legal services to enable the club to become a company limited by guarantee and help with other funding applications.
Eleanor said: "This kind of service was in great demand by parents with children at local schools and nurseries when I first came here and since we have the premises, equipment and skills and expertise needed to offer such a service, it seemed a shame not to look into it. And the mums and dads who use our club can vouch for the benefits it gives them – they can leave their children as early as 8am for breakfast and collect them at 6pm after work if they need to. For a lot of people that makes the difference between being able to work or not."
The club now provides quality childcare with after school activities and a breakfast club for 14 children, some of which come from Highfield and St Josephs Primary Schools. The club has two members of staff and offers children activities including craftwork, games, use of computers, reading and homework sessions.
In addition, the club has recently secured funding from the New Opportunities Fund to start a Holiday Club from September, creating additional employment for a seasonal worker.
May 2005
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