This story was first published on June 27^nd, 2006.

Study Tour of Communities in Schools, New York

Ballymun schools currently operate a wide range of before and afterschool activities and initiatives such as breakfast clubs, homework clubs, afterschool activities, school of music and sports programmes. The Home School Community Liaison Service, the School Completion Programme (Ballymun Educational Support Team or BEST) and Ballymun Initiative for Third Level Education (BITE) also operate in Ballymun. Therefore, areas of main interest and requiring investigation and further development in Ballymun are the integration with schools of:

• Health-related services such as psychologists, speech and language therapy, counselling and social work;
• Early childhood education;
• Family support;
• Parental involvement.

Schools and communities where integration of the above sectors and specialisms is working successfully are of primary interest to Ballymun Partnership alongside the key factors and underlining processes that inform and enable the Community Schools or the Full Service Schools approach.

A delegation of 14 people representing Ballymun schools, Ballymun Primary Healthcare Team, Ballymun Partnership and the Department of Education and Science travelled to New York City in January 2006. The purpose of the Study Tour was

• to visit community schools and full service schools
• to meet with and to learn from the staff working there
• and to learn how these schools attracted additional resources and how they operate on a daily basis.

The study tour took place over 3 days (16^th – 19^th January 2006). Each day was hosted by a different community based organisation and the school that they were working with.

• Children’s Aid Society and Public School 50 Vito Marcantonio School, East Harlem,
• Youth Development Institute (Fund for the City of New York) and PS89, Beacons Family Place and a programme of Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation in Brooklyn
• The Educational Alliance

Upon returning form the Study Tour to New York delegates gathered in Ballymun Partnership Board Room at the end of January 2006 to evaluate the tour and to consolidate the learning from the tour.

Click here to view the BALLYMUN PARTNERSHIP EVALUATION OF STUDY TOUR TO NEW YORK CITY, 16^th – 19^th January 2006.