The purpose of the meeting is to outline Parental Involvement and facilitate a

1
Agenda

• The purpose of the meeting is to outline Parental
  Involvement and facilitate a
• discussion on how it could be implemented at Mid
  Calder Primary.
• Outline Parent Forums and Councils.
• Timeline.
• Key Questions.
• Summary and QA.
• It is important that all parents have a say.

2
What is the Parent Forum?

• The Parent Forum will be made up of every parent
  / carer and will express their
• views through the Parent Council.
• As a member of the Parent Forum, each parent can
  expect to
• Receive information about the school and its
  activities.
• Hear more in future about what partnership
  with parents means in their school.
• Be invited to be involved in ways and times
  that suit them.
• Participate in deciding how the parent
  representative body, the Parent Council,
• is organised and how it operates.
• Identify issues they want the Parent Council
  to work on with the school.
• Be asked their opinion by the Parent Council
  on issues relating to the school
• and the education it provides.
• Work in partnership with staff.
• Enjoy taking part in the life of the school in
  whatever way they can.
• It is important that all parents know about their
  membership of the Parent Forum.

3
What is the Parent Council?

• The Parent Council is a group of parents selected
  by members of the Parent
• Forum to represent all the parents of children at
  a school.
• The Parent Forum can decide on the type of group
  they want to represent their
• views.
• The type of things a Parent Council could get
  involved in include
• Supporting the work of the school.
• Gathering and representing parents views to
  the headteacher, Education
• Authority and HMIE.
• Promoting contact between the school, parents,
  pupils, providers of nursery
• education and the local community.
• Fundraising.
• Organising events.
• Being involved in the appointment of senior
  staff.

4
Main features of Parent Councils

• The Parent Forum decides on the type of Parent
  Council and constitution that
• is right for the school.
• Only parents of children at that school can be
  members of the Parent Council.
• The Parent Forum can agree that the Parent
  Council constitution allows other
• people to be co-opted.
• The local church or denominational body can
  nominate someone to be
• co-opted onto the Parent Council of a
  denominational school.
• The Parent Council chair must be a parent of a
  child at that school.
• The headteacher or their representative has a
  right and a duty to attend Parent
• Council meetings, unless the parents and
  headteacher decide otherwise.
• Schools can choose to set up a Combined Parent
  Council which would
• cover more than one school.

5
Key Timeline
6
Key Questions

• Questions to consider at this stage
• Should PSA merge with School Board to become
  one body e.g. Parent Council?
• How should membership of Parent Council be
  decided?
• Maximum / Minimum number of members of parent
  council.
• Length of term of members?
• Who should hold office bearers positions?
• Parents only on parents council or co-opted
  members also?
• Only Parent Council to have a vote, or all
  members of Parent Forum to have
• a vote?
• How often should parent council meet?

7
Summary and QA

• What did we discuss?
• What next?
• Where can we get more information?
• www.midcalderprimary.co.uk/
• www.westlothian.gov.uk/wlcv2/councilservices/edu/p
  arentalinvolvement/
• Any questions we can answer or take away?