Logo (2)

Logo (2)

Newburgh Mathers School

Parent Council


Welcome! If your child attends Newburgh Mathers School, you will automatically become a member of our ‘Parent Forum’. If the terms ‘Parent Forum’ and ‘Parent Council’ are new to you, you will find a short explanation at the end of this page and some links for further information. If you have already had experience of Parent Forums and Councils, you will know that, within Scottish Government guidelines, each Parent Forum can choose how to set up their representative Council.

Our Parent Council

Parent Council Newsletter – coming soon!

Background

The benefits of involving parents and carers in the activities of schools have long been recognised and appreciated by parents and teaching staff alike. In the past, liaison between schools and parents was conducted through the School Board which was consulted on matters such as management, quality control and discipline. A less formal but equally important organisation, the Parent Teacher Association (PTA), organised events for pupils and their families which, in addition to raising essential funding for school activities and equipment, also helped to unite the school community.

Scottish Schools (Parental Involvement) Act 2006.

In 2006, a review of parental involvement in schools resulted in the formation of a more inclusive parent representative group, the ‘Parent Forum’. All parents and carers of pupils are automatically members of the school’s Parent Forum, which should meet once or twice a year to hear about developments or issues in the school. However, as it would be impractical for the whole Parent Forum to meet with any frequency, it was proposed that a smaller group of their representatives should meet more regularly with members of teaching staff and representatives of the local community, such as local councillors, clergy or police, to enable more in-depth discussion and to take on some of the functions of the previous PTA. These people form the ‘Parent Council’. Further information about Parent Forums and Parent Councils can be found at:

www.scotland.gov.uk
www.sptc.info
www.parentzonescotland.gov.uk
www.bbc.co.uk/schools/parents
www.opfs.org.uk
www.children1st.org.uk/parentline
www.parentnetworkscotland.org.uk