'Like an extended family. From the minute they walk in we're all on the same side.' Depute headteacher
| A school is good to the extent that… | A school is excellent to the extent that… |
|---|---|
| Staff invite parents to events in school and ask them for information on their children’s care and welfare needs at transition stages. Parents receive a settling-in report and can contact the school to make an appointment to discuss their children’s attainment, achievement and progress. Staff listen to parents’ views about their children’s learning and progress. | Staff take active steps to encourage parents to engage with the school and, in particular, to reach out to those who may need help to overcome barriers of various kinds. They discuss a range of issues with parents, for example, arrangements for learning, individual aspirations and expectations, learning targets and approaches to learning. Staff maintain particularly close contact during settling–in and vulnerable periods. |
| Where possible, staff from the school or partner agencies engage in a less formal way with parents, holding workshops, delivering handbooks and visiting homes. Staff make themselves available, where this is possible, at other times beyond planned parents’ evenings. Regular newsletters detail school and community events, classwork, teaching approaches, learning activities and curriculum developments, and celebrate successes. | Workshops and resource packs illustrate work in all curriculum areas and describe teaching approaches. Parents actively participate in discussions and decisions about changes to the curriculum. Staff encourage parents to take active roles in contributing to their children’s learning and to discuss approaches to learning and teaching. Staff regularly gather parents’ views about their children’s learning. They enlist their help, advice and support. As far as possible, staff meet parents at times which are most convenient for parents. |
| Parents receive regular and up-to-date information on aspects of their children’s attainment, achievement and pastoral needs, the progress they are making, and their strengths and next steps. A school handbook provides information on all the school’s policies and procedures. | Staff help parents to understand assessment procedures. Parents have easy access to their children’s current levels of performance. They understand options and progression routes and staff check that their aspirations are being met. Staff use up-to-date information and communications technology (ICT) such as GLOW to communicate, encourage and support parental engagement. For example, they communicate through an interactive school website. |
| It provides information and guidance to parents about their role in helping their children to learn. | As a result of strong partnership with the school and, in particular, the quality of support and information they receive, most parents help their children to engage with learning, sustain their attention and develop their confidence. Parents are well informed about their children’s learning targets and are encouraged to have regular discussions with them about their progress towards achieving them. |
| Most parents feel included and involved in the school, and are confident that they could approach staff if they had any problems. Staff make efforts to tackle disaffection. | Staff establish a culture of inclusion, acceptance and positive discipline. In particular, they reach out to enable disaffected young people and their families to experience success and acceptance. They maintain a particular focus on learners for whom there is little consistent support at home. |
| In residential learning environments, key workers show interest in what young people have been doing during the school day and are aware of how they might help them learn better. | In residential learning environments, key workers are knowledgeable about young people’s learning needs and are committed to supporting them both in the residence and in the classroom as appropriate. |
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PDF file: Partnerships: Developing parents' support to improve their children's learning (128 KB)