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Engaging parents
9 articles
Building relationships with parents
- Engaging parents with EAL: strategies Use our practical strategies to engage effectively with parents who have English as an additional language (EAL). Help them become a part of the school community and provide support for them and their children.
- EYFS: home visits Find out when and how to conduct home visits in the EYFS, with guidance and examples of how schools carry out visits.
- Get your community on board with your approach to anti-racism Not all school communities will be eager to talk about racism and racial justice. Find out how you can encourage resistant members of your community to engage with any anti-racism work you’re doing.
- Headteacher's welcome presentation to parents Whether you're a new headteacher or an existing head welcoming new parents, find out what to include in your welcome presentation and get advice on other ways you can introduce yourself to parents and pupils.
- How to make your holiday celebrations inclusive Find out how to include pupils from all religious backgrounds, whichever holidays or festivals you're celebrating. Our tips will help you be respectful of other traditions and avoid conflict with parents.
- Parental engagement strategies: advice and case studies How can we engage with reluctant parents? We relay expert advice on building relationships with parents and engaging with those who are harder to reach. You will also find case studies from 5 schools looking at different approaches, and ideas for reaching parents through the local community.
- Relationships and sex education (RSE): consultation toolkit The current RSE requirements fully come into force from 1 September 2021. If you're updating your curriculum or policy, and need to carry out consultations with parents, pupils or staff, we have tips and resources to help you get it done - either in person or remotely.
- RSE: handling objections from parents The new RSE requirements are a sensitive subject and you might have to field objections even after the consultation period has ended. Learn about the most common ones and how to handle them.
- Written communication with parents Get tips on how to communicate with parents in writing. Find out the pros and cons of moving to a paperless method of written communication, and see examples of communication policies and procedures.
4 articles
Information and guidance for parents
- How to review your school uniform policy NewFollow these steps to make sure your uniform policy is in line with the DfE's new statutory guidance on uniform costs. Use our cost ready-reckoner, policy audit and consultation guidance to help you develop a policy that works for your school and provides value for money.
- KS1 and KS2 SATs results: information for parents Download our Parent Pamphlet which explains how the results of KS1 and KS2 SATs are reported, and covers scaled scores. You'll also find examples of guidance for parents from the government and schools.
- School uniform policy: guidance Be clear on what you and your board need to consider when setting your uniform policy. Find out how to avoid discrimination to make sure your policy is fair and inclusive to all pupils in your school.
- Statutory guidance on the cost of school uniform NewThe DfE has published new statutory guidance on the cost of school uniform. Find out what this guidance means for your school and what you need to do to comply.
15 articles
Letters to parents
- Absence, attendance and punctuality: template letters to parents Use our template letters to help you address attendance issues such as unauthorised absence and poor punctuality. See examples of letters from primary and secondary schools, and find out how to adapt your letters for pupils with special educational needs (SEN).
- End-of-term gift-giving: template letter to parents UpdatedAt certain times of the year, parents and pupils may wish to give your staff a little something to show their appreciation. Use our template letter to let them know what's appropriate, and find out how to keep exchanges safe in light of the pandemic.
- Headteacher leaving letters: examples Telling parents that you're leaving your school is an important message to get right. Use the advice from our expert and examples from schools in this article to help inform your letter to parents.
- Letters to aggressive parents or visitors You can ban a parent or a visitor from your school premises for abusive behaviour. Find out the process, and see examples of letters from schools and a local authority.
- Lockdown procedures: informing parents and pupils Follow our guidance when discussing lockdown procedures with your pupils. Download our template letter to parents and read examples of letters from primary and secondary schools.
- New headteachers' letters to parents Use our template to create a new headteacher's letter to send to your parents. Read advice on what the letter should cover, and see an example of a letter sent by a new head in another school.
- Newsletters: template and what to include Use our template to create your own newsletter. Also, find tips on the what the contents of a newsletter should be, and how best to write and distribute it.
- Nut-free schools: letters to parents Find examples of notices you can send to parents to let them know about your school's no-nuts approach if you have pupils with allergies.
- Online safety: resources for parents Help parents keep their children safe online with these resources. Download parent factsheets on Fortnite and YouTube, see examples of letters to parents, and read our tips on working with parents with EAL.
- Parent governor/trustee elections: documents UpdatedIf you're responsible for organising parent governor/trustee elections, use our template documents to save you time and make sure the process runs smoothly. Download our template letters to parents, ballot paper and candidate form.
- Phonics screening check: information for parents Use our phonics screening check factsheet to explain the process to parents, including when they'll receive results and how they can help their child prepare at home. We also link to examples of how schools display this information online.
- Poor behaviour: letters to parents Download our template letters you can send to parents about poor pupil behaviour. See also examples from schools.
- Pupil premium and FSM registration: template letter to parents Boost your pupil premium funding with our template letter that encourages parents to register their children for free school meals (FSM).
- Residential trips: examples of letters to parents Read examples of letters to parents about residential trips from primary and secondary schools and a MAT.
- Staffing changes: letters to parents Are there examples of letters informing parents of a change of teacher? In this article, we link to letters from primary and secondary schools written to notify parents of staffing changes. You will also find examples of school newsletters informing parents of revised staffing arrangements.
2 articles
Parental consent and responsibility
- Educational visits: do we need parental consent? Find out which trips require parental consent and who can give this consent, including advice on separated parents and parents who withhold permission.
- Multi-purpose parental consent forms Use our multi-purpose parental consent form covering consent for on-site activities, administering non-prescription medicines, emergency release and communication preferences. Find links to DfE parental consent forms that you can use for off-site activities and prescription medicines, and see examples of consent forms used by other schools.
4 articles
PTAs and events for families
- Parent teacher association (PTA): guidance Learn about how to set up a PTA, register it as a charity and see examples of PTA constitutions from primary and secondary schools.
- Poll results: parents taking photos at festive events Should parents be allowed to take photos of their own children at school events?
- Posters: rules for school events Use our posters to remind parents and visitors about important rules while they're on the school site for an event.
- What to consider before running your school event Be confident you've got everything covered before your school event so it runs smoothly. Get up to speed with how to keep on top of health and safety, what you can charge for, whether you need additional insurance or licences, and how to manage data protection around photos and videos taken at the event.
9 articles
Pupil reports and parents' evenings
- 5 hacks to reduce your pupil report workload See examples of time-saving report-writing strategies from other schools, alongside tips on how to improve your reporting processes.
- Effective parents’ evening conversations: advice for staff Is there any advice on effective subject consultation evening conversations? We relay advice from our experts on holding subject-specific parents' evening conversations. We also link to resources from Tes on having conversations at parents’ evenings.
- EYFS: how to report to parents UpdatedAll early years providers must report to parents at age 2 and at the end of the EYFS. Find out what you need to include in these reports for the progress check at age 2 and the EYFS profile, and use our templates - based on the 2021 EYFS framework - to help you write them.
- Free your teachers from report-writing frenzy: a case study Hazelbury Primary School has replaced traditional end-of-year reports with pupil-authored learning journals. Teachers have better work-life balance, the headteacher saves over 400 hours a year and parents get all the information they need. Here's how you could achieve this too.
- How to run a virtual parents' evening If you want to give a virtual parents' evening a try, follow our advice to make sure your event runs smoothly. Plus, see examples from schools that have already hosted one.
- Mid-year reports to parents You can send pupil reports to parents throughout the year, rather than just annually. Learn about your requirements and what to include in a mid-year or end-of-term report.
- Parent consultation evenings: requirements You need to provide at least 1 opportunity per year for parents to discuss pupil progress with a teacher. Get guidance on how you might do this.
- Pupil reports to parents: checklist and templates Use our checklist to make sure your annual reports meet statutory requirements, and see what extra information you need to include at the end of KS1 and KS2. Download our templates and adapt them to suit your needs.
- Pupil reports: using 'emerging', 'expected' and 'exceeding' (primary) Is there guidance on using the terms 'emerging', 'expected' and 'exceeding' in reports to parents? This article relays advice on using these terms to report pupils' progress to parents, and features a report template in this format. You will also find a case study from schools using this system.
10 articles
Resolving issues with parents
- 5 tips for effective parent communication Use these tips to help improve communication with parents in your school.
- Aggressive parents: zero tolerance posters Find examples of posters to remind visitors and parents that aggressive behaviour will not be tolerated. Also find letters you can send to aggressive parents and other abusive visitors.
- Complaints procedures: guidance (academies) Get to grips with what your complaints procedure needs to include, and how to go about following it.
- Complaints procedures: guidance (maintained) Get to grips with the DfE's best practice advice on managing school complaints, and learn what to consider as you develop your complaints procedures.
- Handling requests to withdraw pupils on religious grounds If parents wish to withdraw their child from a subject due to their faith, read our article for help with finding a compromise.
- Parents complaining about other parents and children How can we respond to parents' complaints about other families? In this article, we relay advice from two of our associate education experts on meeting with parents and responding to their complaints about other parents and children. We also link to examples of policies and letters from schools.
- Parents recording conversations with staff Data protection legislation does not apply to parents recording meetings for their own personal use. Find out how you can deal with parents who want to record conversations.
- Persistent or aggressive complaints from parents How can we deal with persistent and aggressive complaints from parents? We relay advice on resolving complaints informally, as well as how to handle persistent complaints and deal with parents who act aggressively. You will find guidance on when to decide to stop responding to a complainant.
- Separated parents: rights and responsibilities All parents have a right to participate in decisions about their child's education. Understand what your school has a responsibility to do, and how to avoid common conflicts.
- Social media: how to deal with negative comments or behaviour by parents Use our internet acceptable use agreement to help prevent inappropriate social media use by parents and to make your school's expectations clear. Get tips on how to deal with incidents and problems online, and download our template letters to parents.