PARENTS AS PARTNERS - Parental Involvement Policy                                                                                

At Saint Joseph’s Nursery School all parents and carers are equally valued as part of our school community. We recognise the important role they play in the education of their children and the benefits and value achieved when there is a strong relationship between home and school. We encourage all parents to be fully involved in their child’s education and in the life of the school. We seek to work in partnership with all parents, keeping them fully informed of school life and their children’s achievements.

Saint Joseph’s Nursery School welcomes children and parents from other faith denominations and so our families bring a rich and vibrant mix of beliefs, cultures and languages, all sharing the common goal that children will meet their full potential. Saint Joseph’s Nursery aims to create a rich learning environment, developed in collaboration with families.

Aim

• To enhance and widen our children’s education through the involvement of parents and the community.
• To ensure parents feel welcome and involved in the life of the school.
• To build supportive working relationships based on trust between parents and all school staff.
• To establish an equal partnership with parents, in which both parents and teachers are seen as learning from each other
• To ensure communication is effective so that parents feel confident and knowledgeable about what is happening in school and in regard to their child’s education
• To build on ways in which families already support their children’s learning at home to meet the learning needs of all children
• To strengthen links between learning at school and learning at home

 

Objectives

Saint Joseph’s Nursery’s objectives are to foster an ethos and atmosphere where parents feel welcome and valued.

The school will:

• Create an atmosphere which is respectful and positive towards parents, children and everyone in the school
• Maintain an “open door” approach for parents to contact and visit the school
• To work with parents in promoting positive behaviour at home and at school
• Seek to provide a range of opportunities throughout the year when families can be invited into school (e.g Induction meetings, curricular workshops, lending libraries, Christmas Celebrations, fundraisers, parent courses…)

 

Communication with Parents

• Provide regular, two-way and meaningful communication between home and school, so that parents feel confident and knowledgeable about what is happening in school and ensure their needs are met.
• Use a variety of methods of communication - newsletters, curriculum letters, school policies, prospectus, Seesaw App, school website, informal and formal meetings, awards/certificates and an opportunity to have a home visit.
• Offer a translation service
• Respond to concerns or complaints raised by parents promptly and appropriately. (See Complaints Procedure Policy)

 

Parents working in partnership

The school actively tries to involve parents by planning specific activities which welcome them into the school and encourage parents to work in partnership with the school in their child’s learning and progress:

The school will:

• Parent/child drop off allows parents to visit the classroom and see nursery practice in action.
• Daily availability of nursery school staff at the main entrance door welcoming parents into school or opportunities to speak with class teachers at the end of the school day.
• Hold parent / teacher meetings and will provide verbal and written reports throughout the year;
• Hold induction and curricular workshops where parents can learn about and discuss how to support their child’s learning.
• Provide curricular information to support learning at home.
• Help parents to realise the importance and benefits of the support they can give their child at home
• Provide additional support to parents who may experience difficulties in supporting their child’s learning

 

Active involvement

To effectively use parents’ expertise and willingness to support their child/children and be actively involved in school life, we will encourage parents to:

• Volunteer to help on school trips and in school activities
• Share any areas of expertise they may have with the school
• Become parent governors
• Become a member of the PTA

 

Induction and Transition

To ensure the smooth induction and transition of children the school will:

• Provide opportunities for all prospective parents to find out about school via an open afternoon and/or to the Nursery
• Provide transition information for parents of children moving on to Primary School.
• Provide an induction pack welcoming the parent and child into the school.
• Following parental consent forward transition information on to feeder primary school.
• Invite Primary One teachers into the nursery to meet children and to discuss ways to ensure their smooth transition from nursery to primary.

 

Parents views and opinions

To establish the views and opinions of parents and act upon these we will:

• Regularly seek parents’ views and thoughts regarding school programs and developments regularly throughout the year
• Conduct an annual end of term/year parent survey/questionnaire
• Work in conjunction with parents on key issues and policies
• Note anecdotal comments and suggestions made by parents
• Collect suggestions and ideas provided by parents in the ‘suggestion box’ to help us enhance our program further.
• Collect letters, cards provided by parents which support the work of the school

 

Parental and Family Involvement

To develop opportunities for parental and family involvement in children’s learning, the school will:

• Provide a range of activities and workshops (supported by the Nursery Parent Worker if available) to promote parental involvement in family learning as well as life-long learning for all (parenting courses, e-safety, general support, healthy lifestyle courses, child development courses etc.)

 

Staff engagement

To continue to build the ability of staff to effectively engage families in supporting children’s learning and development we will:

• Provide high quality induction programmes for new staff
• Provide high quality professional development programmes for all staff

 

Result of Parent Partnerships

By working in close partnership with parents, we nurture the development of trust, respect, confidence, independence, self-esteem and the desire to learn.

We provide quality learning experiences with the expectation that all will have the opportunity to achieve their full potential.

 

Monitoring and Evaluation

This policy will be reviewed and monitored in line with the school’s policy review schedule.