Terms of Reference

LOUDWATER COMBINED SCHOOL

Parents’ Forum Terms of Reference

 Values

  • To promote the enjoyment and engagement of all pupils in their education.
  • To support the school in its development.

 The Parent Forum will:

  •  Create and maintain a strong partnership between parents and the school.
  •  Enhance communication with and between all members of the school community.
  • Assist governors, teachers and all staff by commenting on new initiatives, drawing attention to any general areas of concern and contributing to solutions.
  • Provide a link for parents to make suggestions to further improve the school.
  • Highlight areas that need addressing and would benefit from discussion in the Forum.
  • Enable parents to share the school’s progress on its priorities for development.
  • Provide an opportunity to share information from the governing body and from FOLS (Friends of Loudwater School).

 

Principles

Parents’ Forum will be:

  •          Collaborative: participating together for the benefit of the school community.
  •          Constructive: helping to identify effective solutions.
  •          Transparent: keeping everyone informed of meetings and their outcomes.
  •          Encouraging: welcoming ideas to foster a positive ethos.

 Membership

The parents’ forum is a separate and independent body from the Governing Body and from Friends of Loudwater School (FOLS).  Whilst the Chairs of these groups are welcome to attend the forum each group will have a different Chair.  The Chairperson of the Forum should be a parent.

  • any parent/carer or grandparent that has a child at the school. 
  • all school based staff (teacher/head teacher).
  • all Governors.
  • all meetings will be held at school.
  • Invitations to other relevant bodies as appropriate.

Code of Conduct

  • Individual circumstances should be discussed through appropriate channels already in place in school and not at the Parents’ Forum; the Forum is not an interface for specific areas of concern around individual children.
  • Listen to others’ views and respect diversity of opinions.
  • Treat speakers with respect.
  • Act Courteously.
  • Avoid naming individual members of the school community.

 

Frequency of meetings

  • Once each term, unless circumstances mean that it would be beneficial to all to meet more frequently.
  • The meetings will last a maximum of 90 minutes.

 

Reporting

  • Minutes taken and distributed to all parents within 10 days of the meeting.
  • Minutes will include date of next meeting.
  • Agendas to be agreed and distributed at least 5 days prior to the meeting.
  • Reminders through emails of forthcoming forums and topics to be discussed.
  • Minutes and agendas will be available to all in the school reception and on the school website. .

 Review

A report of the work of the Parents’ Forum will be produced at the end of each academic year.

 

March 2019