Engaging the Voluntary & Community Sector in Children’s Centre Commissioning

This programme aims to work with the voluntary and community sector to help increase their management of children centres or delivery of children centre services in several pilot areas throughout England.

The engagement of the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) in delivery of all aspects of children’s services has long been recognised and valued. Many local VCS groups have strong links with hard to reach communities and are therefore well placed to encourage/increase community engagement at all levels.

This particular project involves 4Children enabling and facilitating local authorities to examine current delivery methods in children’s centres and look at how to engage with the VCS as part of their commissioning process. The programme works with the VCS, Children Centre Managers and Local Authority Commissioners identify any potential issues and barriers and develop solutions to ensure long lasting and productive relationships in the delivery of early interventions.

The programme works with each local authority to:

• Agree a timed delivery plan based on clear objectives
• Set up a task group of local partners to oversee the programme
• Carries out research with the VCS, children centre managers and local authority to discover local barriers and preferred models for future service delivery
• Provide a workshop that tackles a key barrier discovered
• Showcase the findings at regional events

4Children is working with the Fatherhood Institute and Contact a Family to ensure that their expertise is part of the local discussions. 4Children also have an Advisory Board that includes Children England, Penn Green, Pre School Learning Alliance and the National Council for School Leadership to help respond to the issues identified.

In 2011-12, we are working with the following local authorities: Darlington, Knowsley, Leeds, Luton, Kent, Westminster, Barnet, Bexley and Poole. In the second year, an additional nine local authorities will be identified.

At the end of the two years, 4Children will have a number of working case studies that identify successful methods to engage the VCS and hope to show that the support will shift intentions of all the three partners to increase VCS involvement in children centre management and service delivery.