Themes
The Education and Learning Open Grants scheme operates across three themes. All applications to the scheme must be in relation to one or more of these themes. Applicants will be asked to state a theme that their application relates to during the applications process.
Supplementary education
We specifically want to support the work of supplementary schools and define these as schools which operate on a part-time basis, led by voluntary sector organisations and with the active support of parents and the local community, primarily for the benefit of children and young people from Black and minority ethnic communities.
We wish to support work that is expected to make a positive impact on young people's academic attainment, achievements, aspirations, life chances and / or their sense of wellbeing and belonging.
We will not fund religious teaching or activities.
We invite applications from supplementary schools themselves and also welcome proposals from other types of not for profit organisations that will directly benefit supplementary schools.
We recognise that it will be difficult for many small supplementary schools to achieve the sector-wide impact described above under the programme criteria. Therefore, in assessing applications from supplementary schools against our innovation criteria, we look in particular for work that addresses an issue that is of wider relevance to the supplementary school sector and for programmes of work that will benefit the wider sector in some way, perhaps by sharing new practices, experiences and learning with other supplementary schools or with mainstream schools.
Developing speaking and listening skills for 11-19 year olds
We specifically want to support activities, taking place in or outside of school, which develop the oral communication skills that all young people need to become effective, contributing members of society.
These activities should encompass, at an appropriate stage, an explicit focus on speaking and listening skills so that participating young people are aware of subsets of skills and strategies that they have acquired or developed and how these are applicable to a wider range of situations and circumstances.
We are particularly interested in:
- activities that develop, in realistic and ideally 'real world' contexts, the speaking and listening skills that will help young people to achieve at least one of the following outcomes: 1) engage appropriately with the world of work; 2) lead and contribute to positive change in their communities; 3) resolve misunderstandings, tensions or conflict between groups in their communities
- Inter-generational work that involves young people working with their families, carers and / or communities
Add to the learning - preventing school truancy and exclusion
This theme aims to support preventative work that will reduce the chances of children and young people reaching the point of persistent absence or exclusion from school, by enabling those considered to be most at risk of this to achieve and progress alongside their peers.
We wish to support work that builds on existing strong models to achieve or stimulate change at a systemic level beyond a single school or local partnership. For example, proposals may aim to demonstrate an innovative application or delivery mechanism in order to significantly extend the impact or reach of practices that have already been evidenced as successful.
We wish to support proposals for new multi-agency approaches and initiatives, for example, collaborative working between schools, children's trusts, local authorities and / or third sector partners. We are particularly interested in partnership working that takes a holistic and inclusive approach to changing practice and culture within and in support of the education system, and that includes strategies intended to achieve at least one of the following intermediate outcomes:
- Raise aspirations amongst pupils, and the aspirations that parents and communities hold for their young people
- More positively engage children and young people with their learning at school
- Improve parental/carers' engagement with their children's learning and increase mutual understanding and positive relationships between schools and pupils' parents/carers
- More effectively support children and young people through periods of transition within the education system
- Address behavioural issues, particularly through improving the ability of school staff to manage and/or reduce the incidence or impact of these.
Successful applicants will be expected to evaluate their work and contribute to the collective knowledge base and evidence within the sector about what works in ensuring success for all within our education system.