Parental engagement with children’s learning has long been known to be one of the best levers available for raising achievement and closing the achievement gap. However, schools often struggle to support parents, particularly those families with disadvantaged learners. The toolkit will allow schools to build a clear framework for engaging with and supporting parents, as well as providing information about support available elsewhere.

Thirty school leaders from Wiltshire attended the launch day, looking to improve their own practice and to share good practice between schools.

The toolkit, developed by Dr Janet Goodall on the basis of her research into parental engagement with children’s learning, is being piloted in conjunction with Wiltshire Council. Over the next calendar year, schools will use the toolkit to chart their current practice with regard to parental engagement in children’s learning and to plan their future progress in this area crucially, how they will get there.

The toolkit will provide help for schools to plan interventions and support for parents, charting milestones along the way. Schools will be able to collect evidence of the impact of what they are doing and of their engagement with parents which is vital for Ofsted inspections.

The launch day included input from Judith Vanderpump who heads up the Family and Community Learning Team at Wiltshire Council. The team’s mission is to help children, young people and adults to attain the highest possible standards of health, development and educational achievement by supporting them in their families, schools and communities.

If you would like to find out more about the Toolkit for Parental Engagement, please contact Dr Janet Goodall.