Literacy clubs

WQ.105/2018

WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR EDUCATION BY DEPUTY G.P. SOUTHERN OF ST. HELIER

ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 10th JULY 2018

Question

Further to her response to Written Question 92/2018, in which the Minister stated that "it was decided investment would be better utilised to develop alternative provision [to the Jersey Early Learning Literacy Years clubs]", will the Minister explain –

1. whether this means that the two schemes (Making it REAL' and Triple P') used to run alongside the J.E.L.L.Y. clubs initiative, or were both replacements for those clubs;
2. what funding has been allocated annually for these early literacy schemes since the commitment by the previous Council of Ministers to the 1,001 Days Programme;
3. how much was spent in particular on engaging parents with children between 6 months and 3 years of age, those of nursery age (3 to 5 years) and those at school (5 years plus) and how many parents were involved;
4. to what extent delivery of these schemes takes place in schools (rather than other settings), especially when directed at Jersey Pupil Premium children;
5. to what degree the principles of J.E.L.L.Y. clubs and those of Making it REAL' are shared;
6. what evidence is used to measure the success of these schemes; and
7. what a "population level approach to supporting parents" is?

Answer

1. REAL was not implemented as a replacement for the J.E.L.L.Y. clubs initiative. Both initiatives did run alongside each other for a period of time. Since the introduction of REAL, the initiative has been expanded to include REAL for Parents and Making Maths REAL and its reach is far greater than the J.E.L.L.Y. clubs initiative. Further training is being made available in September 2018 for any school not already benefiting. Triple P is also not a replacement for J.E.L.L.Y. clubs but focuses on a range of common areas parents often ask for support with, including managing behaviour, promoting resilience and reducing family conflict.
2. There was no central funding allocated for J.E.L.L.Y. clubs. Funding was derived from income generation through charging to parents and schools. For the REAL programme resources have been prioritised by the Education Department to commit staffing to support the joint delivery of training with the National Children's Bureau. The REAL initiative is part of the Early Childhood Development Programme funded by UBS Optimus Foundation and delivered through their implementation partner the National Children's Bureau. In addition to REAL, further early literacy initiatives are supported by the Department, for example Wellcomm Tool Kits (a scanning and screen tool for identifying early language and literacy needs) for use in private sector nurseries. Schools are able to use Jersey Premium funding to purchase these resource packs. These packs cost £350 and to date 13 have been purchased. It is not possible to provide actual staffing costs from the department who support these programmes as budgets are not defined in this way.
3. Costs for the Triple P parenting programme included a one-off set up cost of £137,000 in 2017. This paid for the necessary resources, training, consultation and support to begin delivery and roll-out. Ongoing costs for the delivery of the Triple P programme have been absorbed into current staffing budgets. This programme is delivered to parents with children aged 0-19 years and has worked with over 340 parents. It is not been possible to break this down by the age groups requested. The programme costs for REAL are funded by the UBS Optimus Foundation and are supported through current staffing budgets. This programme is delivered to 735 children, 611 parents and delivered over 28 settings. The programme is delivered to 3-5 year olds in the nursery and reception year.

4. Triple P is delivered in collaboration with schools and predominantly in school settings. REAL has been offered to all schools and private sector nurseries. If an early literacy initiative is funded by the school's Jersey Premium funding then this will be delivered in the school.
5. Both programmes use the ORIM framework as guiding principles with a view to achieving co- production between parents/practitioners and recognising parents as partners in learning. ORIM stands for opportunities, recognition, interaction and model and uses the strands of early literacy, early writing, environmental print, books and oral language.
6. REAL is measured by participation rates, practitioner evaluation, parent feedback and confidence levels, levels of engagement, the number of practitioners trained, the number of REAL champions trained, the number of parents attending and the number of new library members. Further measurement is done through data analysis of our profile data in early years within the three prime areas of learning: communication and language; personal social and emotional development; and physical development. These are key indicators of children's further learning capacity. Triple P is an evidenced based programme and success is measured through various evidenced based tools for example Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaires [SDQs].
7. A population approach' to parenting means an approach to reaching as many parents as possible with messages about positive parenting. By offering a range of different levels of parenting support including one off seminars, one to one work and in-depth group programs, more parents are able to access these programmes. Research indicates through a broad approach more parents will be reached, reducing stigma and enabling all those who need support to be included.