This item will now be considered under Part 2 of the agenda.

1.    It is recommended that Chorley Inspire Youth Zone and Chorley School Sports Partnership will deliver the HAF programme on behalf of Chorley Council.

2.    That the total funding from LCC of £242,505 is allocated accordingly to Chorley Inspire Youth Zone and Chorley School Sports Partnership to be able to deliver the programme.

Councillor Bev Murray, Executive Member (Early Intervention), presented the report of the Director of Communities which provides details in relation to Lancashire County Council’s (LCC) Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) programme and gives details on the proposed delivery model.

LCC have developed a desired model of delivery of the national HAF programme with expectation on local districts to play a key role to deliver locally, help achieve best outcomes, and meet the needs of our local families. Chorley has 2591 children aged 4-16 receiving free school meals. The programme will help address child food poverty during the school holidays and help support many families who struggle during this time. A budget of £242,505 has been allocated to deliver the programme in Chorley.

It is proposed that Chorley Inspire Youth Zone and Chorley School Sports Partnership would be the most suitable partners to be able to deliver this service having all necessary experience and capacity to be able to deliver the programme.

Members queried how it would be ensured that all children who receive free school meals in Chorley can access the support based on the figures in the report. Members were advised that 30% provision indicates the amount of places the programme needs to make available per day based on the national delivery format funding from the Department of Education. Therefore , we need to make approximately 777 places per day available which allows for 30% of our free school meals pupils at any one time.  This will be covered by the LCC funding and the shortfall will be met by the council working with partners to also help support those in hard to reach areas. Members were also reassured that the outlying districts are covered by a rural premium and there may be local provisions available that the council can buy into to ensure the need in rural areas is also met.

Based on the importance of this work, Members requested that a report be brought back to members on how the programme goes. It was agreed that local level data could be fed back to Members and advised that a full report would likely undertaken by LCC too.

Decision:

1.    It is recommended that Chorley Inspire Youth Zone and Chorley School Sports Partnership will deliver the HAF programme on behalf of Chorley Council.

2.    That the total funding from LCC of £242,505 is allocated accordingly to Chorley Inspire Youth Zone and Chorley School Sports Partnership to be able to deliver the programme.

Reasons for recommendation(s):

To ensure the successful delivery of the HAF programme for children between the ages of 4 and 16 who are eligible for free school meals. The programme will help address child food poverty during the school holidays and help support many families who struggle during this time. Chorley Inspire Youth Zone and Chorley School Sports Partnership are Chorley most experienced organisations working with children and young people providing high quality services. They have the infrastructure, knowledge, and partnerships to deliver the programme.

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