Addressing 'After-school Quality' Behind '1st & 3rd Grade Walls' - After-school NPO Afterschool Launches Policy Co-creation Project with Soil × PolicyFund Support

After-school NPO Afterschool (represented by Kuniyasu Hiraiwa), whose mission is to make after-school hours across Japan a 'Golden Time,' has announced the launch of a policy co-creation project starting in April 2026. This initiative is supported by 'Soil × PolicyFund,' a joint project of the Soil Foundation (represented by Tetsushi Hisada) and PoliPoli Inc. (represented by Kazuma Ito).

### Structural Issues of Quality Behind the '1st & 3rd Grade Walls' In Japan, there is growing concern over issues surrounding children's environments, such as waiting lists for after-school clubs, the '1st and 3rd grade walls,' and spaces for children who do not attend school. While these issues are often discussed individually, they share a common structural root: society has not sufficiently established environments where all children can spend time safely, interact with others, and grow as themselves. Although the capacity for after-school clubs has increased, the focus has predominantly been on 'quantity' (number of slots). The 'quality' of these environments—including opportunities for autonomy, experience, and human interaction—remains underdeveloped. A survey by After-school NPO Afterschool revealed that the highest dropout rate occurs in the 3rd grade, primarily because 'children no longer want to go,' highlighting a qualitative issue in how this time is spent.

### Designing After-school Care as Social Infrastructure The project initially focuses on policy advocacy to enhance the quality of after-school clubs. Specifically, it will propose: 1. Enriching experiential activities. 2. Promoting the use of school facilities. 3. Improving staff working conditions. The long-term goal is to redesign these high-quality spaces as open social infrastructure accessible to all children, not just those from dual-income households.

### Aiming for Policy Co-creation and Social Implementation By facilitating dialogues between national/local governments and practitioners, the project aims to turn field expertise into effective policies. A key focus is bridging historically divided sectors, such as education and welfare, to encourage cross-cutting policy formation.

### Online Forum Announcement On May 27, 2026, an online forum for local government officials will be held titled 'The Future of Diverse Learning and Children’s Spaces: Sharing Practical Examples Created by Schools and After-school Programs.'