The Harlem Children's Zone (HCZ) is arguably one of the most extensive extended education approaches established to date. It has sought to create a seamless programme of support for children living in Harlem, from birth to early adulthood, in family, school and community settings. The evidence on HCZ's impacts is limited, but its approach nonetheless has many proponents internationally, who see it as a means to further an extended education agenda. In this paper, given the lack of robust evidence on HCZ, we seek to advance an evidence-based rationale for adopting a 'children's zone' approach. We conclude it may have the potential to achieve greater impacts than more limited school-led approaches to extended education.