About the Programme

1. What is the Enrichment Expansion Programme (EEP)?

Transforming life opportunities for young people through enrichment. This funded opportunity aims to support the halving of the participation gap between disadvantaged young people and their peers by 2035.

Your school is one of 400 selected by DCMS and DfE for this national, three-year programme. It is designed to strengthen enrichment, particularly for disadvantaged, underrepresented or underserved young people, by helping schools develop youth-led provision, build partnerships and embed enrichment in school culture.

Schools will receive funding for the staff capacity needed to participate. Wider programme support will be available, giving schools access to expertise, resources and development opportunities.

2. Why has our school been selected?

Your school has been selected to participate by DCMS in a national cohort of 400 schools that will help shape and demonstrate effective approaches to enrichment. The programme aims to create learning that can benefit schools across England. Your school will be allocated to a local Cluster involving approximately seven other schools all within one hour’s drive of your school.

3. Is there a cost to participate?

No. The support provided through the programme is funded through the Enrichment Expansion Programme. Schools may choose to invest additional resources in enrichment activities, but participation itself does not carry a programme fee.      

Schools will receive an annual grant of £3,300. The level of funding provided for school grants is broadly in line with a Teaching and Learning Responsibility (TLR) 3, enabling schools to fund a dedicated staff member’s time to engage with the programme. Schools are not required to set up a TLR to deliver the programme if that is not their preference. However, the funding must be used to enable staff time and capacity to engage directly with the programme in whichever way suits them best.

4. We don’t use Wonde. Can I take part?

For a school not currently using Wonde (very few in England, 99% of DfE schools in England use Wonde to share data with at least one third-party application), our in-house Customer Support Services team will arrange an appointment to set the school up with Wonde first.  During the webinar in October, we will provide further information regarding Wonde.

5. How long does the programme last?

The programme is planned to run until March 2029, with support provided throughout the programme period.

School Commitment

6. What will we be expected to do?

Schools will be expected to:

• Nominate an Enrichment Lead.
• Complete baseline surveys and programme reviews.
• Engage with youth voice activities.
• Work with an Enrichment Co-ordinator.
• Develop and implement an Enrichment Development Plan.
• Participate in learning and sharing opportunities.
• Support evaluation and monitoring activities.
• Attend the Enrichment Expansion Programme conference on Wednesday 24 February 2027 at Telford International Centre.

7. How much staff time will be required?

The programme has been designed to minimise burden on schools. Most schools should expect:

• Regular meetings with their Enrichment Co-ordinator.
• Completion of occasional surveys.
• Attendance at relevant webinars and network sessions.
• Time to coordinate and review enrichment activity.

Support provided by the programme is intended to reduce workload wherever possible.

8. Who should be our school's Enrichment Lead?

This could be a senior leader, Enrichment Co-ordinator, pastoral leader, PE lead or another member of staff with responsibility for enrichment and extracurricular opportunities.

Support Available

9. What support will we receive?

Schools will receive:

• Capacity funding – all participating schools will receive funding to support their engagement with the programme through an annual grant of £3,300 (£1,100 per term). Further detail can be found in your invite letter
• Dedicated Enrichment Co-ordinator support across a cluster of 5-8 schools locally
• Access to expert partners, such as:
  • Learning Outside the Classroom
  • Curious Minds
  • The Enterprise Academy
  • EFL in the Community
• Training and CPD opportunities, for example:
  • Local networking
  • Enrichment specific workshops
  • Online platform
• Youth voice resources
• Data and participation tracking support to ensure impact is measured and reviewed
• Planning tools and templates
• Access to webinars, networking and best-practice examples

10. What is an Enrichment Co-ordinator (EC)?

The EC is a full-time role (funded by the EEP) to work directly with a cluster of 5–8 local secondary schools to provide localised support that builds awareness, capacity and stakeholder commitment to high-quality enrichment. The role strengthens access to enrichment opportunities for all young people, particularly those facing disadvantage or barriers to participation. The EC supports schools to assess current provision, identify gaps, develop strategic enrichment plans, build local partnerships, embed youth voice and create sustainable approaches that improve outcomes for young people.  If your school is interested in finding out more about hosting the EC for your area, please contact [email protected] so we can arrange a time to discuss further.

11. Will schools receive support with SEND inclusion?

Yes. The programme includes specialist support through Lead Inclusion Schools and other partners to help schools develop more inclusive enrichment opportunities.

Youth Empowerment

12. What is meant by Youth Empowerment?

Youth empowerment provides young people with the skills, confidence, support, and opportunities to take control of their lives, make their own choices, be part of decisions that affect them, and make positive changes in their communities.

13. Will we have to establish a Youth Board?

Not necessarily. Schools will be supported to build on existing structures where these are already effective. The focus is on meaningful pupil involvement rather than creating additional bureaucracy.

14. Who are Enrichment Youth Voice Leaders?

Enrichment Youth Voice Leaders are young people who help gather pupil views, identify opportunities and support the development of enrichment activities within their school.

Data and Evaluation

15. What information will schools be asked to share?

Schools will be asked to provide information relating to:

• Enrichment participation
• Pupil engagement
• School provision
• Programme activities

Any data sharing arrangements will be managed securely and in accordance with agreed permissions and relevant legislation.

16. How will success be measured?

The programme will monitor a range of indicators including participation, inclusion, pupil engagement and implementation of enrichment improvement plans. The programme will also evaluate the impact of increased participation on improving pupil outcomes such as pupils’ wellbeing, school engagement, attainment and behaviour.

Partnerships and Opportunities

17. Will the programme help us find enrichment providers?

Yes. Enrichment Co-ordinators and regional teams will help schools identify local and national partners and opportunities that match pupil needs and school priorities.

18. Can we continue working with our current partners?

Absolutely. The programme is designed to strengthen and build on existing relationships as well as create new ones.

19. Will there be funding for activities?

The programme includes support to help schools identify opportunities and develop innovative approaches.

Sustainability

20. Will resources remain available after the programme?

The programme intends to create lasting resources, tools and case studies that schools can continue to access and use.

Practical Questions

21. What if our Enrichment Lead changes during the programme?

Schools can nominate a replacement lead at any point.

22. Can academy trusts participate across multiple schools?

Yes. The programme recognises the important role that trusts play in supporting and scaling effective enrichment practice. The funding is only available for the targeted school, but we hope that learning could be shared across the trust.

23. Who do we contact if we need help?

Your first point of contact will be your assigned Enrichment Co-ordinator. Additional support will also be available through the national programme team by emailing [email protected]. 

24. What's the biggest benefit for our school?

Schools tell us that high-quality enrichment helps improve pupil engagement, belonging, confidence, wellbeing and school culture. This programme provides expert support to help schools build a sustainable enrichment offer that reaches more young people, has a lasting impact and aligns with the DfE Enrichment Benchmarks

Additional Questions

25. We have a wide ranging enrichment programme but it doesn't currently have 100% participation from every student at the school. Does Ofsted require 100% participation?

Meeting the new enrichment framework is not a requirement for schools to achieve an ‘expected’ grade or above under Ofsted’s grading criteria. Instead, inspectors will consider it as part of the inspection process when evaluating the steps a school or college is taking to support pupils, recognising that the framework is new.

In summary, Ofsted will use the framework to inform its understanding of the school’s approach. It is not intended to operate as a checklist or rigid set of requirements, but as a means of understanding the school’s processes and approach to participation.

26. Will this be delivered with Schools Sports Partnersip that are currently in place? Will there be funding to support in school co-ordination?

This work will bring together the individuals and organisations that can provide local support, we are hosting a webinar on 2 November to provide further information.

27. How do I find out who my Enrichment Coordinator is?

Enrichment Coordinators have not yet been appointed. Once sufficient schools have joined a cluster, we will begin identifying an appropriate local host for the role.

28. How does a school express interest in hosting the coordinator role?

Schools interested in hosting the Coordinator role should email [email protected].

29. Our MIS system is not great for tracking so we use ASPIRE east learning, to track enrichment.

We will work with our tech partners and all major MIS providers to try to ensure all barriers to tracking in this way are identified and where ever possible overcome. We are hopeful this could lead to improvement in MIS system capability. It is imporatant to the learning we can take from the programme that all school track in a way that can support school, cluster, regional and national insight. We will be happy to have specific discussion with any schools that have concerns about this approach to help us find a solution.

30. When would you advise the Enrichment Lead comes in post?

Ideally, the individual should take up the role after the October half-term, although we recognise that this may not be possible for every school. We aim to have all Enrichment Coordinators in place by Christmas.

31. Is this for Special Schools?

Yes. Special schools are included in the programme, approximately 20% of the invited schools are Special, PRU or AP.  We are keen to support shared learning across mainstream, special and alternative provision settings.

32. Will you be sending a template Job description and person spec for the Enrichment lead, if we chose to go down this route?

Yes. We will provide a template job description and person specification for the Enrichment Lead role, together with details of the available funding.

33. How can we check that our school has signed up?

Please email [email protected] and the team will confirm whether your school has signed up.

34. We have already gained momentum in our Enrichment plans. When will the work with EEP start?

Ideally, in-school Enrichment Leads should be in post from the October half-term, although we recognise that this may not be possible in every case. We aim to have Enrichment Coordinators in place by December.

We recognise that schools are at different stages in developing their enrichment provision. The programme is intended to support both schools that are beginning this work and those that have already invested significant time in planning and implementation.

35. Our Trust uses Arbor to register students. This is a new system to us and we have received very basic training on this. Do you have any experience of using Arbor and can you use this to track enrichment easily?

Yes. Arbor is one of the most commonly used MIS platforms, and many schools use it. We will provide support and guidance on using it to track enrichment activity.

36. Have the 400 schools taking part in this pilot been recruited?

Yes, the 400 eligible schools have been invited to participate via email. A number of factors were considered as part of our school selection process for the EEP, including area eligibility, Free School Meal measures, pupil ages, and schools' most recent Ofsted assessments relating to personal development. This has enabled the programme to focus its support on schools where there may be greater need for support to strengthen and expand existing opportunities.  The 400 schools have already been invited to be part of the programme

37. How do we know who else is in our cluster?

Once participating schools have completed the sign-up process, we will provide a list of the other schools in each cluster.

38. Evaluation - Senior Leader advisory role.

The email address for enquiries about the Senior Leader Advisory role is [email protected].

39. I’m on the reserve list. What is the likelihood of getting on?

At present, it is not possible to assess the likelihood of a reserve-list place becoming available. Each cluster will include six to eight schools; if a selected school declines its place, we will contact schools on the reserve list.

40. I didn't receive the welcome pack, shall I email the enquires email?

A link to the welcome pack was included in your invitation letter.

41. Will there be a continuation of funding?

The funding period for the programme is to the end of March 2029 and funding for future programmes are subject to Spending Review. The EEP is rooted in supporting schools to deliver effective and sustainable practicies to ensure that tailored and youth-led enrichment offers can continue once the funding period has ended.

42. TLR Funding

The funding is intended primarily to create staff capacity for the school to engage with and coordinate the enrichment programme. Schools may use it for a TLR or another suitable staffing arrangement (e.g. staff cover for attendance at events), depending on what works locally. It is not intended to subsidise pupils’ participation or fund direct delivery of enrichment activities. A separate additional £300 per school is included in the first payment to support set-up and delivery costs. Indicative payments are £1,400 in winter to March 2027 (including the £300 set-up element), followed by £3,300 in 2027/28 and £3,300 in 2028/29. DCMS and its grant administrator will provide further details on the payment process in due course. 

43. What is the time commitment for the  Enrichment Lead?

There is no fixed time commitment for the Enrichment Lead role; however, we recommend allocating approximately one to two hours per week. We recognise that this may vary depending on other school priorities, particularly during busy periods such as the lead-up to examinations. The Enrichment Coordinator will liaise regularly with each Enrichment Lead to understand their available capacity and provide appropriate support.

44. My school has not received the invitation letter, who do I contact?

Please email [email protected].

Funded by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and delivered in strategic partnership with the Department for Education.