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'Lynch mob' parent councils unwelcome

‘Lynch mob’ parent councils will do more harm than good in the effort to improve schools, says the leading association representing school leaders.

The National Association of Head Teachers said that the Government’s proposals for parent councils to give parents a stronger voice and presence in schools are unnecessary and will do little more than add to teachers’ workloads.

“We note that parents already have a powerful voice on governing bodies, have open access to teachers and senior staff, and support the school through parent/teacher associations,” the association said in an issued statement. “This proposal will add another layer of bureaucracy on the school management structure, not only with another set of meetings to attend, but also with the preparation and servicing of those meetings.”

Noting the rise in pupil attainment over the past eight years the association said it acknowledged the vital role of parents in making these gains.

“However,” it continued, “we are convinced that the vast majority of parents are far more interested in supporting their child at school than being encouraged to form ‘lynch mobs’ to rid the school of leadership teams struggling to produce high standards in very challenging circumstances.

“We believe that parents are far more concerned with the health and well being of their child’s teachers and head teachers rather than imposing parent councils on schools.”

The association further deplored the accusation in the White Paper that schools seek to ‘hide low or mediocre standards’ or to deny parents the right to play a full part in their child’s education. In fact, it said, the reverse is true: schools implore parents to play a greater part in their child’s education, sometimes without much success.

The NUHT warned that unless the Government pays more heed to its duty of care towards this nation’s school leaders, it will not stem the flow of senior staff out of the profession, it will not recruit sufficient numbers of people to ensure that every school has a head teacher, and it will not have fit and energised teams leading its schools.

How will the White Paper affect parents?