The Parent Council
In this page we’re going to try to explain the role of the Parent Council and how it works at Trinity Academy. There are plenty of resources available that may help provide information on parent councils but this is where we try to summarise things as simply as possible.
What is a Parent Council?
Parent councils were set up to encourage parental involvement in school education; Parents (we’ll use the term ‘parents’ but this also includes carers and families) are by far the most important influences on children’s lives.
All parents who have a child attending a school are members of the ‘Parent Forum’ for that school. One of our roles is to represent your views to the school, education authority and others, through a representative Parent Council for the school.
“The Parent Council, as a statutory body, has the right to information and advice on matters which affect children’s education. In all cases, parents and the Parent Council can expect to influence decisions, to be listened to and be taken seriously.”
What does a Parent Council do?
The responsibilities of a parent council fall broadly within the following four areas:
- Representing the views of parents
- Supporting the school in its work with pupils
- Reporting to the Parent Forum
- Promoting contact between the school, parents, pupils, and the community
To meet these responsibilities we will do the following:
- Periodically we will seek your views on specific issues and carry out a survey of your views about the school and the work we do. You are also welcome to contact us at any time with issues you wish to raise regarding the school. We can be contacted by email, through our website, writing to us through the school office or just speak with any of our members.
- We aim to report to you each term through a newsletter and through our website and mailing list. We operate as openly as possible with a record of all minutes and accounts available through the website.
- Parent council meetings have included presentations from young people at the school. Our local councillors are invited to each of our meetings, providing feedback on issues in the wider community and an opportunity to raise issues
What does a Parent Council not do?
It is not the role of a Parent Council to tackle individual issues affecting a specific child where the parent should proceed first to the Headteacher and then to the local authority. However your views on any issues are welcome, as a single issue may provide an opportunity to review and discuss a subject more widely.
How can you help?
There are a number of ways you can help the work of the parent council. Most importantly, you don’t have to be a member of the parent council to come to our meetings. Even if you don’t want to raise an issue, it’s a great opportunity to learn more about the work of the school.
What else can you do?
Let us have your views.
Are there any issues at the school that concern you?
What information do you need from us?
Members
Trinity Academy Parent Council office bearers are:
- Chair – Paul K Jeffrey
- Vice Chair –
- Treasurer – Morag Burnett
- Secretary –