Nursery World - At the core

Some schools have rolled out extended services, but will Government targets be unattainable because of cash shortfalls? asks Simon Vevers The Government's ambition to have all schools providing access to a core offer of extended services by 2010 - half of all primary and a third of all secondary schools by 2008 - can hardly be faulted as half-hearted. But, while the Government exceeded its target of 2,500 schools with extended services by last September, there are serious question marks about levels of funding and the extent to which schools are embracing the programme.

The Government's ambition to have all schools providing access to a core offer of extended services by 2010 - half of all primary and a third of all secondary schools by 2008 - can hardly be faulted as half-hearted. But, while the Government exceeded its target of 2,500 schools with extended services by last September, there are serious question marks about levels of funding and the extent to which schools are embracing the programme.

Latest figures from the DfES indicate that more than 3,800 schools are providing the core offer of extended services and more than 11,500 are said to be progressing towards it.

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