Stockton children's food and holiday programme poorly attended
A holiday activities programme is to be overhauled after most of its places went unfilled.The Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) project in Stockton, which has been running for five years, offers activities including horse-riding, martial arts and paddle-boarding, as well as healthy meals. However, a review of the programme found that its booking system was "unfit for purpose" and, during Easter last year, 1,580 children and young people attended although there were 6,000 spaces.Stockton Council, which runs the programme with £1m from the Department for Education (DfE), said it offered balanced meals to children and "much-needed support" for families.
The council select committee report found the booking system was not "user friendly".It also found parents and professionals did not know about the programme and many people did not realise they were eligible to take part, despite numerous promotion efforts.
It also found low numbers of secondary school children and children with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) were not taking up places, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said. The council said the programme offered an "astonishing" range of activities and it was working on providing SEND-only sessions in future.Select committee chair Carol Clark said: "These activities allow our children to have fun and make new friends as well supporting their development, including lifelong learning."The council is now considering 16 recommendations including a better booking system and promoting HAF with parish and town councils.
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