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Letting parents shape the system
The Government has made a commitment to increase parental involvement in schools: not just involvement in children’s learning but in informing decisions about service provision and the running of schools.
The Education and Inspections Act 2006 sets out three new ways parents can be involved:
- All schools are encouraged to set up Parent Councils
- Governing bodies of maintained schools have to take account of the views of parents in carrying out their functions
- Parents are given opportunities to shape the pattern of school provision – by having the right to a considered response to representations to their local authority about the provision of schools in the area.
Parent councils
All schools are encouraged to establish a Parent Council to provide a forum for parents to express their views and influence the running of their child’s school.
In trust schools where the trust appoints the majority of the governing body, the Government requires that a Parent Council is established. This is the only instance a Parents Council has to be established.
A resource pack for those schools wishing to establish a Parent Council is now available.
Governing Bodies taking account of the views of parents
Governing bodies have to consider the views expressed to them by parents of pupils registered at a school.
It will be for individual schools to decide how and when to seek the views of parents, but there are important milestones such as the start of primary school, the transfer to secondary school and the start of each key stage when parents are likely to welcome closer involvement in their children’s education
All schools will have to demonstrate that they listen to and take on board the views of their parents as part of school inspection.
Parent promoters
Parent groups are encouraged to come forward to their local authority as promoters of new schools where local provision is insufficient to meet their needs, or they want a different style or ethos of school in their area.
Parent groups could make a representation to the LA and the authority would then support these groups with the development of their own proposals for a new school.
These would need to be published and determined in the usual way, and according to the local decision making process. If the school was to be a maintained school, the LA would be responsible for funding it in the normal way.
The normal route for the establishment of a new school is for the LA to invite proposals from a range of promoters in a competition.
Where the LA or parent promoters wished to publish proposals for a new school outside a competition, they would need to seek approval for this from the Secretary of State.
The role of the promoter includes determining the ethos and vision of the school, determining its category, determining its outline admission arrangements, and (if proposals are approved) appointing key members of the governing body - up to a majority.
Parents may also make representations seeking a new school without themselves offering to promote the school - in those cases, depending on the circumstances, an appropriate response from the LA would be to hold a competition, or work with another promoter to develop proposals for a particular type of school -such as faith school.
The LA might, however, equally respond to demand for one particular type of provision or for new places by proposing the enlargement of an existing school, or other changes to existing provision.
Parent Promoters must follow the same statutory local decision-making process as other proposers of new maintained schools.
An example of a successful new parent promoted school is in Lambeth.
