The Enrichment Framework for schools and colleges – summary

A summary of the new framework to ‘support schools and colleges in England to plan, strengthen and review their enrichment offer’.

The Government has published its awaited non-statutory Enrichment Framework for schools and colleges which was announced initially in their response to the Curriculum and Assessment Review (CAR). In the publication, schools and colleges will find enrichment benchmarks, resources to support schools and colleges, evidence on enrichment in schools and colleges, an enrichment provision self-assessment tool, a provision action planning tool, and information about the members of the enrichment framework expert working group.

Context

In the Background supporting the enrichment framework for schools and colleges, the DfE explains how it defines enrichment, ‘ a wide range of activities and experiences that exist beyond the curriculum.’ It explains that these activities may be linked to the curriculum or provide skills and knowledge outside of the curriculum. The DfE also notes that enrichment may be delivered within or outside of timetable lessons, and that it may be delivered by school/college staff, external providers or, (with support and guidance from staff) it could include peer leadership.

The Government has introduced the enrichment framework to support the National Youth Strategy’s aim to ‘halve the participation gap in enriching activities between disadvantaged young people and their peers by 2035’. It notes how enrichment opportunities are important for helping young people to develop essential skills such as teamwork, creating a sense of belonging, improving wellbeing and raising aspirations. The DfE notes that nearly all schools offer at least one extra curricular activity (98%), so the focus is on expanding opportunities and making them more inclusive.

The enrichment benchmarks

There are eight benchmarks that the Government recommends to help schools and colleges ‘provide a clear, simple structure against which schools and colleges can effectively evaluate their own provision and make appropriate and considered improvements to their offer.’ The benchmarks are informed by the Enrichment for All: benchmarks to build belonging, skills and opportunity report, which was a consultation of school and community leaders, young people and other stakeholders, who worked together to draft a set of enrichment benchmarks (developed independently of Government).

The eight DfE Enrichment benchmarks are as follows:

1. A strategically aligned enrichment offer
2. A broad and well-rounded enrichment offer
3. A well-communicated enrichment offer that celebrates participation and achievement
4. An enrichment offer shaped by the school or college community
5. An accessible and engaging enrichment offer
6. An enrichment offer that works in partnership
7. An outcomes-focused enrichment offer
8. A continually improving enrichment offer.

Within each of those benchmarks are indicators that the school/college meets the criteria such as ‘3.4. All pupils and students are supported to reflect on their enrichment experiences, considering their learning, progress, personal interests and skills’ – alongside example case studies, to illustrate how the concepts work in practice. The Government also notes that when considering using the benchmarks to support the delivery of their enrichment offer, schools and colleges need to take account of their own contexts and policies.

Planning, self-assessment and other resources

The Enrichment provision action planning tool is a downloadable Word document that helps schools set enrichment targets and define how they know that they are successful. In the table template, there is an example of  a target with bullet point list of actions, who will monitor it and how, when the target will be achieved, resources needed, bullet point success criteria and if the target is Red, Amber or Green in terms of the level of challenge to achieving it with notes as to why. They also put on which enrichment benchmark the target relates to and an action headline. Then there’s a blank version for schools/colleges to use to create their own plan.

The Enrichment provision self-assessment tool is also a downloadable Word document, and it is used to measure the school/college’s enrichment against each of the benchmarks criteria. The scoring for the benchmarks are as follows:

• score 1 – identifying
• score 2 – developing and implementing
• score 3 – embedding
• score 4 – sustaining and stretching.

It’s designed to help schools/colleges to see where they are at and identify their next steps. On the template table, school/colleges are also given a column to include evidence against their scoring.

Schools and colleges will also find a list of resources and and information, along with organisations that can give them support.

Evidence on enrichment in schools and colleges

This is an evidence base of what current provision looks like, what’s working and perspectives of young people and their parents.

Here are a few key points from the document (2024-2025 data):

• The most popular enrichment activity amongst schools was competitive team sports (88%).
• 72% of primary school parents said their child took part in at least one activity in the summer term of the 2024-2025 academic year.
• Qualitative research with young people found that extra-curricular activities can boost young people’s confidence to interact socially with others and extend their social networks.
• Engagement with the arts during childhood and adolescence has been found to play a role in wellbeing and factors relating to social cohesion.
• In FE settings, 66% of respondents report having a whole-college strategy for enrichment with clear aims and objectives.
• 90% of FE settings encouraged all learners to be involved in at least one enrichment activity.
• The Association for Colleges survey reports that 93% of college respondents say they include physical or sexual health promotion projects in their enrichment offers.
• Young people most commonly cited taking part in extracurricular activities for enjoyment, learning new skills, keeping fit and spending time with friends.
• 51% of parents supported the idea of extending the school day to create more time for enrichment.
• 75% of non-grammar state school parents and 81% of grammar school parents reported barriers to their child participating in enrichment opportunities, compared with 63% of private school parents.

Learn more

Read the full guidance

References

1. Natural history GCSE to teach teenagers to plant wildflower-friendly gardens. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/education/2026/jun/11/natural-history-gcse-to-teach-teenagers-to-plant-wildflower-friendly-gardens (Accessed 12 June 2026)