Takinogawa High School Free School Opens 'After-School Day Service'

Convenient Location Accessible from Both the Station and Free School Takinogawa High School Free School (operated by Jiyu Kyoiku Co., Ltd.), located in Kita Ward, Tokyo, opened its new venture, the "Takinogawa High School After School Day Service," on April 1st. The location is "Sunbell Hashimoto 101, Ukima 4-3-13, Kita Ward, Tokyo," an easily accessible 8-minute walk from Takinogawa High School Free School, JR Kita-Akabane Station, and JR Ukima-Funado Station. The tenant was originally a Japanese restaurant. It is a Japanese-style after-school day service. The signboard and noren (curtains) are yet to be installed. What is an "After-School Day Service"? An after-school day service is a program where children and students aged 6 to 18 who experience daily difficulties can receive therapeutic care (developmental support services) during after-school hours. Specifically, on weekdays from approximately 2 PM to 6:30 PM, and on Saturdays from approximately 10 AM to 3 PM. We provide individualized therapeutic care to help children with developmental characteristics and difficulties acquire necessary daily living skills and adapt to group living. The target beneficiaries of after-school day services are, in principle, children aged 6 to 18 with disabilities or developmental characteristics who are enrolled in elementary, junior high, or high school. Therefore, to use the service, it is necessary to apply to your local ward/city/town based on a doctor's opinion and obtain a "recipient certificate." What Takinogawa High School After School Aims For The decision to open Takinogawa High School After School was made because, through our support for children who do not attend school, we realized that modern educational challenges are not limited solely to school non-attendance. It would be wonderful if we could "(1) support children who are becoming school non-attendees before they actually stop attending school" due to various factors. It would also be very wonderful if we could "(2) nurture children who have become school non-attendees at a free school, and then support them after they return to their original school or advance to higher education." When we considered a business that could satisfy all of these, we initially thought of cram schools. Indeed, cram schools could satisfy condition (2). However, it became clear that cram schools found it difficult to satisfy condition (1). So, while searching for various businesses, we arrived at the "after-school day service." An after-school day service can further function as "(3) a place where free school students can grow after the free school's closing time of 3:30 PM," and "(4) a place where school non-attending children using after-school day services can grow and connect with free schools." We believe this is truly remarkable. In addition, an after-school day service is also ideal as "(5) a place where children and students who find it difficult to attend free school due to orthostatic dysregulation can grow in the evening hours." And uniquely for Takinogawa High School, it also has the aspect of "(6) a place where specialized staff who have directly supported school non-attending children for 7 years can maximize their potential." Thus, it seemed self-evident that Takinogawa High School Free School should open an after-school day service that fulfills all conditions (1) to (6). Arrangement of cushioning materials and large desks suitable for learning around. Making the Most of the Wide Space This concept has been around for several years, but actual action began last autumn. The first step was finding a tenant. To open an after-school day service, a "guidance and training room of at least 2.47㎡ per student" is required. With a capacity of 10 students, a 25㎡ training room, along with a consultation room and an office, is needed. Furthermore, a condition from a safety and disaster prevention perspective was that the classroom should not be on the third floor or higher. Renting a tenant that met all these conditions was a high hurdle, but we were able to find this wonderful place called "Sunbell Hashimoto." A "tatami" space making the most of the Japanese taste of the tenant. The size of the guidance and training room per student is a surprising "8㎡." There are many after-school day services in Kita Ward, but we believe ours can be called "one of the largest." It's more than three times the standard size. Given such a large space, naturally, there are many things that can be done. However, currently, it's mostly just a "vast empty space." While it's good to purchase many things from the beginning, what I desire is to "appropriately purchase what the children who will be enrolling need." Instead of children adapting to what we prepare, we want to understand and provide what they need. This is what Takinogawa High School has continued to do for 7 years. The policy of "students (users) first" remains unchanged for "Takinogawa High School After School." We are incredibly excited about what kind of children will join us and what a wonderful place we can create. Special Website Launched In addition to the official website of Takinogawa High School Free School, a special website for the Takinogawa High School After School Day Service has been launched. Various information will be updated on the official website from now on. Click here for the special website!! There isn't much information yet, but we will continue to update new information. For those wishing to attend, please contact us via official LINE Since we just opened today, there are still vacancies for the capacity. We will continue recruiting until we reach the daily capacity of 10 students, so for those wishing to attend, we await your contact via the official LINE link below. Click here for official LINE!! Aiming to be the "Number One After-School Day Service in Japan" We aim to improve physical function through stretching and light exercise. In the excessively spacious training room, specialized staff are assigned at a ratio of 1 staff member to 2-3 students. In conjunction with the free school, we also enhance support for obtaining high school diplomas and career paths to junior high, high school, university, and vocational schools. Of course, we will also generously conduct recreation, SST (Social Skills Training), and communication training, which are characteristics of after-school day services. Until now, we have been active as "experts in school non-attendance." However, through the operation of free schools, we have come to realize that the various know-how we have cultivated can be useful not only for students who do not attend school but for all children. From now on, as an "after-school day service," we aim to practice our education (therapeutic care), create many success stories in collaboration with free schools, and spread them nationwide. We have been striving to be the "Number One Free School in Japan," and from now on, we will simultaneously aim to be the "Number One After-School Day Service in Japan." We will make every effort to be of help to as many children and their guardians as possible. Jiyu Kyoiku Co., Ltd. Representative Director, Takeshi Toyoda