Middlesborough

Objectives

To bring together three strands of local authority activity: raising achievement in schools, increasing prosperity for citizens through higher employment levels and increasing social exclusion.

The proposal formed part of Education Action Zone development and was to use the toolkit in developing the Learning partnership that was envisaged to take work further.

Outcomes

At the stage of the interim report the project had barely begun its activities but it was becoming clear that the focus had shifted to the establishment of a corporate partnership to support and promote community use of schools. This was seen as a key strategy in raising achievement by engaging with parents and employers and strengthening links between lifelong learning and regeneration activities.

The consultant's report clearly outlines the purpose of the initiative indicating that this should provide a range of benefits for parents in equipping them to help with their children's learning and developing their own learning potential. The initiative would also help schools to engage business in developing teacher/business exchanges, providing placements and work experience and help to encourage an improved work related curriculum.

The project would set in train a process whereby better use of school premises would result from projects that would promote leisure, learning and regeneration. The consultant then sent the project a schedule of the stages that needed to be undertaken in setting up the project and in evaluating it. The report does not mention the use of the Guide in the project work nor has any report further to that of the consultant been received from the project. It is not possible to be sure from the information received the extent of the project's final progress, the benefits gained, how the Guide was used or its usefulness.