PARENT FORUM AND PARENT’S GROUP (PARENT COUNCIL)
Scottish Schools (Parental Involvement) Act 2006 led to the establishment of Parent Councils in primary, secondary and special schools. The Act recognises the vital role that parents play in supporting their children’s learning. It places a duty on authorities to promote the involvement of parents in children’s education and the wider life of the school. It aims to help parents to be:
- Involved with their child’s education and learning
- Welcomed as an active participant in the life of the school
- Encouraged to express their views on school education generally
All parents who have a child attending the school are automatically members of the Parent Forum for our school. Membership of the forum allows parents to have a say in the local arrangements to enable their collective view to be represented on matters such as the quality and standards of education at the school and other matters of interest to parents. These views can be represented, as appropriate, to the Head Teacher of the school, the Council and HMIe.The Parent Council, as a statutory body, has the right to information and advice on matters which affect children’s education.The Head Teacher and the local councillor may attend all meetings of the School Council and have the right to speak, although not being members of the Council, have no right to vote.All parents may attend meetings of the School Council and may contribute to the discussion on any topic. However, should a vote be necessary on any occasion, only elected Council members may vote.
SOCIAL COMMITTEE
There is a very active Social Committee, a sub group of the Parents Group. Regular meetings are held in the school throughout the year. All parents/carers are welcome to attend – details of these meetings will be published in the newsletters.
Various fundraising and social events are organised throughout the year. Last year’s programme of events included a Hallowe’en Disco, an Easter Disco for all pupils, Winter Wonderland, Primary 7 Leavers’ Dance and family BBQ.
SHARED FINISH
At the start of the new school session we hold a Shared Finish for each class which allows parents to join with their child in a class lesson. This gives parents and carers an opportunity to see their child’s learning in action and form a relationship with the new class teacher.
PRIMARY 1 FAMILY LUNCH
Parents and carers of Primary 1 pupils are invited to come and dine with their children as they begin school.
CURRICULUM WORKSHOPS
Throughout the school year, a variety of workshops and visits to the classrooms, provide opportunities to find out about curricular areas and how to support your child’s learning.
Details of these will be given in our newsletters and where applicable to particular classes or groups of pupils, you will receive a separate letter giving details.
Throughout this session Miss Kearns, Principal Teacher, has arranged a number of workshops for parents on a whole range of subjects: Bug Club reading, Visible Learning, Number Talks, Talk 4 Writing, Active Literacy, SEAL (how we teach numeracy) and Reciprocal Teaching.
PARENTS’ EVENINGS
Formal appointments with the class teacher are arranged twice a year to enable parents to discuss their child’s progress and view school work.
If you have a concern about your child, parents are encouraged to contact the school at any time to discuss these – please do not wait until the next Parents’ Evening.
CLASS NEWSLETTERS
Each term, a class newsletter is provided to give an update of what’s happening in your child’s class.
MONTHLY NEWSLETTERS
School newsletters are published every month giving information about the life and work of the school.
The school actively uses Twitter to share what has been happening and future events @SMPG1964. All classes have their own Twitter accounts sharing additional information with parents and carers.
PARENTAL FEEDBACK
We actively encourage your comments about the life and work of our school. This helps us to evaluate and refine our work as required.
FAMILY SUPPORT
Through funding from the Scottish Attainment Challenge, we have access to a Family Support Worker, Marie Linning. She runs our Family Breakfast Club on Friday mornings and Family Homework Club on Wednesdays and a Craft Club on Thursdays. Mrs Linning works with pupils and their families both at home and at school. Her support has been invaluable.
James Kane also works with our families. James works for Community Learning and Development and his role is also funded through the Scottish Attainment Challenge. James arranges and leads clubs for families to attend but also classes solely for parents on a whole range of topics, for example, Child Psychology, Heart Start and Beauty Therapy. James is also available to assist parents and carers with any aspect of home budget planning and getting back in to employment.
Parents are always welcome to make an appointment to meet with the Head Teacher or Depute Head Teacher to discuss any worries or concerns. Should parents wish to make a complaint to Education Services this should be done via the following link:
https://www.inverclyde.gov.uk/council-and-government/complaint or by calling 01475 717171.
