A new education body in Scotland will seek to amplify the voices of pupils’ families.
The Scottish Assembly of Parents and Carers (SAPC) starts recruiting members from today.
The news comes after the Scottish government took the controversial decision earlier this year to cut all central funding for the National Parent Forum of Scotland (NPFS).
The NPFS was set up in 2009 following legislation designed to boost parents’ involvement in education, but in May the government confirmed it would receive no further funding and that a “national parent panel” would instead be set up, in time for the start of the 2024-25 school year.
The new body will be “hosted” by the Scottish parents’ organisation Connect - which says the SAPC will play a “critical role” in informing policy and education reform - and funded by the Scottish government.
‘Fully representing every demographic’
The SAPC aims to bring together a “diverse cross-section of parents and carers from across Scotland”, including those of children with an additional support need and from Black and ethnic minority communities. It is open to any parent or carer of a school-age child in Scotland and will initially comprise 100 members.
The education secretary Jenny Gilruth said the SAPC would be “fully representative of every region and demographic in Scotland, including parents and carers from under-represented groups, adding: “It is crucial that the views of parents and carers are heard on matters that impact children and young people.”
Gavin Yates, executive director of Connect, said the creation of the SAPC reflected “an important and improved commitment to parental involvement and engagement in Scotland”.
Connect has underlined that the SAPC will “decide its own workstreams and priorities” and that assembly members will be free to “focus on the topics and areas of interest that matter most to them”.
He added that “genuinely hearing from parents at all levels of the education system is imperative” and that the SAPC could “truly embed parents and carers as key partners in Scottish education”.
‘Brilliant opportunity’
Amy Woodhouse, chief executive of Parenting across Scotland - an umbrella group comprising several organisations - said the SAPC was a “brilliant new opportunity for parents and carers to come together to make a difference to education”.
Applications can be made by filling in a short form at the SAPC website. Support to complete the form is available via info@parentcarerassembly.scot
For the latest in Scottish education delivered directly to your inbox, sign up for Tes’ The Week in Scotland newsletter
