Scotland outlines plan to improve parental engagement

The Scottish Government has launched its first ever national action plan to encourage and support parents to be more involved in their child’s education.

This includes steps to support positive involvement of all parents plus targeted actions aimed at specific groups including ethnic minority parents, parents of children with additional support needs, those with disabled children and those with learning disabilities.

The strategy has over 50 recommendations and is supported by £350,000 from the Scottish Government to help address barriers some parents may face.

Other commitments include a refresh of Education Scotland’s online ‘Engaging Parents and Families’ toolkit, the establishment of a working group to explore parental volunteer opportunities, a review of the existing statutory guidance on parental involvement and the development of improved guidance and training materials for parent councils.

Deputy First Minister John Swinney said: “I’m pleased to launch this action plan today which builds on existing legislation to support and enhance the role of parents in their child’s education. We want every parent and family to have the right support in place so that they can be involved in every stage of their children’s learning and development.

“We know there is a strong link between parental engagement and academic achievement and this plan will play a key role in helping to reduce the attainment gap.

“This action plan will help cement Scotland’s place as a world leader in parental involvement and engagement and I look forward to working with a wide range of partners to deliver this plan in the coming three years.”