AFTER school activities need not be a chore. In fact, as the new initiative at Lacon Childe School has proved, they can positively be fun.

Dr Gill Eatough, head teacher of the Cleobury Mortimer School, has been responsible for instigating the new series of after school classes following a questionnaire which went out to the whole school, writes Caroline Bovey.

The huge affirmative response showed there was a clear need for classes in a wide range of subjects both within and outside the school curriculum.

A grant application was lodged for New Opportunities Funding (NOF) which is part of a nation-wide initiative for schools to provide after school activities.

Located as it is at the heart of a predominantly rural area, the school serves an area of 200 sq kms. Including several remote villages. Cash was needed to enable the school to provide additional transport to get children home. Following the success of the application, extra coaches and minibuses have subsequently been provided, and the service should be further streamlined in the future.

The classes are designed to be entirely separate activities rather than simply an extension of the school day, and a competition among pupils to find a suitable name came up with L.@FTER CLUB, which aptly expresses the ethos behind them. Starting with a ten-week course of classes, which began at the beginning of the current term, the initiative extends to eight weeks in the spring and summer terms. Classes are held on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings, from 3.45pm to 4.55pm with buses leaving school at 5pm. In order to create a proper 'out of school' atmosphere, pupils are given the opportunity to change into 'civvies' before a snack in the canteen after normal school activities are over for the day.

There is a wide range of arts, sports, and practical subjects on offer and pupils can join in with a different activity on each night if they like. Tuesday evenings are predominantly sports orientated, with coaching in 17 different sports on offer, including golf for beginners, rugby, soccer, aerobics, basketball and in Decem-ber, skiing (6.30pm finishing time).

Pupils have to sign up for each activity during the week beforehand and can take part in one per week maximum and can try a different one each week. Some activities such as basketball and skiing are open to all. Other sessions are available for specific years or designed to provide girls with the opportunity to try rugby or soccer.

The Young Engineers sessions offer pupils the chance to work with experts in building something functional and exciting. Partic-ipants are currently involved in building their own Go-Peds, the scooters which are the latest craze. Pupils taking part in the photography classes learn how a camera works, how to improve their photographic skills, and do their own film processing, either for fun or as part of a GCSE course.

Classes are designed to be a mixture of fun and extra qualifications. The new Computer Centre is available for general IT classes, open to all, on two nights. Classes on Wednesday are for years 10 and 11 pupils who wish to take IT as a GCSE, or if already studying for a qualification, to improve their skills. Musicians too have the opportunity of gaining an extra GCSE, studying with head of expressive arts at the school, Mrs Gay Barker, who is also responsible for putting together the programme of events.

Many pupils have difficulty in finding a suitable place to complete their homework. The L.@fter Club Centre also provides a quiet environment for study in which to do homework. Alternatively, extra staff are on hand to provide study support with homework, projects, or coursework.

Although still in its early days, the L.@fter Club has already proved a big success. Plans for the future include widening the scope of classes available and there is already a waiting list for existing sessions. The school is now planning to extend the project by providing a summer school for pupils. They are applying for additional funding for this later this term.