The role of the Parent Partnership
The Scottish Schools (Parental Involvement) Act 2006 established a new structure and process for establishing a parent representative body for each school.
Parent Councils should play an active role in supporting parental involvement in the work and the life of the school, while also providing opportunities for parents to express their views on children’s education and learning.
The Parent Partnership, as a statutory body, has the right to information and advice on matters which affect children’s education. The school and the education authority must consult with the Parent Partnership and take their views into account whenever decisions are being taken on education provided by the school.
The Parent Partnership is a group of parents selected by members of the Parent Forum to represent all the parents of children at a school. Parent Partnership are very flexible groups and the Parent Forum can decide on the type of group it wants to represent their views. Parents might decide they want a representative from each year group in the school. They might want to include pupils, other teachers at the school or parents from a feeder or secondary school. This flexibility allows parents to choose a Parent Partnership which reflects their school and will encourage parents to get involved.
The types of things a Parent Partnership can get involved in include:
- Supporting the work of the school
- Gathering and representing parents’ views to the Head Teacher, Education Authority and HMIE
- Promoting contact between the school, parents, and pupils
- Fundraising
- Organising events
- Being involved in the appointment of senior staff
Main features of Parent Partnerships
The Parent Forum decides on the type of Parent Partnership and constitution that is right for the school.
The Parent Partnership should establish a written constitution, detailing such information as aims, purposes, membership and meetings.
Only parents of children at that school can be members of the Parent Partnership.
The Parent Forum can agree that the Parent Partnership constitution allows other people to be co-opted onto the Parent Partnership of a denominational school.
The Parent Partnership chairperson must be a parent of a child at that school.
The Head Teacher or their representative has a right and a duty to attend Parent Partnership meetings, unless the parents and Head Teacher decide otherwise.
Schools can choose to set up a Combined Parent Partnership which would cover more than one school.
Woodfarm High School Parent Partnership
The inaugural meeting of the Woodfarm High School Parent Partnership was help on 6th September 2007 and the constitution was approved.
Over the years, the constitution was modified and further improvements were agreed. To view the current constitution, click here.
