Teacher shortages and schools in crisis - what can parents do?

[noproblemifnot]

I have 3 DC - Y6 and Y3 in a wonderful primary school which we and they love. Youngest not yet in school. Having read the recent thread on the challenges facing teachers and schools, I am worried about what awaits them in the years ahead as well as angry and depressed about - well, all the issues mentioned on the thread.

But I want to be positive and practical. What can I do as a parent to support my children and their teachers?

For context/further info on the teachers side - I realise that not voting Conservative in the next GE seems an obvious answer, but it feels so far away. Is there anything we can do now? I support the strikes and have been (with my kids) at the picket line outside our school every time so I hope they know they have my morale support but it feels inadequate.

And on the kids side - We have always said we wouldn't send our kids to a private school unless there was a specific educational or social need. This is both for broad ethical reasons and because we couldn't afford to send all three. But maybe we should consider this as a time of specific need? I hate the idea of my bright 11yo being taught by supply teachers, or over-worked exhausted teachers who can't offer the right support to him or his peers. Should we be saving for tutors, looking at moving him to private in a few years? We have changes we could make to our lifestyle to make it affordable for him and maybe DC2 - then we pray that things are better for DC3?!

I also see lots of posters suggesting parents are part of the problem, but how? What should change?

Anyway, any thoughts on what we can actually DO about the crisis in the short term whether on a personal or societal level would be much appreciated to lift me out of this frustration.

Going private is the best thing you can do, or perhaps homeschool/internet school if you can. Ensure your dcs are enrolled in sports activities, cadets, cubs/brownies, music stuff for extra curricular opportunities and socialising.

The stroppy, entitled, boorish, uncouth, aggressive parents are the worst, from what I understand. Nobody needs to act like that.

There's lots of learning resources online if you want to supplement their learning and broaden their minds beyond the national curriculum and school provision.

My DS is at senior school now but I've just sorted out all his novels, suitable for ages 5-11 and given about 50 to the primary school library. They're all unmarked, and Roald Dahl etc so pretty standard. It means some of the school book budget can go elsewhere.

And I pot up cuttings & seedlings every year to raise money at the school summer fete. All it costs me is a bit of time & some compost but last year it raised £90. They have a parent who works for a corporate that will double any charitable fund raising, so they were able to double it up to £180.

The PTA last year raised £9,500. It's a very small school, so that paid for a lot of supplies & kit.

My dsis who is a retired primary teacher does two afternoons a week at her local primary school listening to reading practice. It keeps her busy and involved, provides a bit of extra resource for children who need it and can take a little of the pressure off reception/year 1 teachers.

Write to your MP?

This too. But in the short term, schools need money & resource.

Resource can be anything from volunteer weekend groundsmen to fund raisers. Every penny saved elsewhere can go into salaries & pensions.

I often think of doing this and then talk myself out of it since we live in a Labour constituency and I don't know what difference it would make. I guess, trying to answer my own question, it ensures they know education should be a priority for GE campaign and beyond?

Do you know if the school is short of any resources in particular? Is there a PTA or equivalent? Helping out at fund raising, helping out in school if you have the time (DBS too)maybe asking the class teacher if they’re in need of glue sticks, stationery, other practical stuff.

If you and they really like the primary school, I’d see what you can do practically to support them and think about private for secondary perhaps. If they’re thriving where they are, that’s important. If you felt they weren’t, tutors might be an option.

By the time the youngest is school age, you might have a clearer idea of where things are going and hopefully, more money saved.

Oh yes, I agree. Schools need all of the help that they can get, and they are mostly very grateful for all of the help that parents can offer.

However, as a school governor, I don't believe that even the most willing and generous set of parents can make up for the cuts that we have seen to our budgets in recent years, so the ultimate solution can only be political.

Don’t vote Tory
Ask about education on the doorstep
write to your MP
support your child’s school wherever you can

@MrsBennetsPoorNerves No, you're right, it can't. But if our efforts help hold the teaching staff together until after the next election, then that is what we will do.

I’m a teacher, in Australia, but we have same issues here. I teach in a private school and my older 2 attend private high school. My youngest is in a government school and it’s getting so bad. She is moving the end of the year. Kid’s behaviour is out of control. State high schools are the worst. Kids fighting, vaping, swearing and throwing things round the class. It is so bad, I’m not surprised that there is a shortage. When I talk to friends who work in the state system they are amazed that I can actually teach stuff to my class. That my biggest issue is my year 7 class getting too interested and excited about the topic and calling out. I don’t know what the solution is but it seems like the parents just don’t care how their kids behave at school.

Oh yes, absolutely. I certainly try to do my bit wherever I can. If only to help keep teacher morale up a little by letting them know that we understand.

Even not being a PITA parent would help quite a lot!

The older ones already do extra curricular stuff and my DH is brilliant and supporting their learning (they both lean more towards his type of subject/interest than mine, so I provide the support in other ways.) I think one definite for me is making more use of extra tutoring which we haven't used much til now as not really needed.

I do have faith in us as a family, and when I was at school/starting work in the early 00s it felt like in a good state school and with supportive parents then kids could really do well, achieve their potential etc. Of course the structural advantages of wealth were there but you could still bridge that state/private gap to an extent and there were benefits to sticking in state.

Now the gap with private now feels so big, I suspect you are right that private is the best choice if you can afford it, and that depresses me for lots of reasons

Parents could stop complaining to the school for every tiny detail that they perceive as not perfect for their child. For me, as a swim teacher, it is the entitled arsehole parents who will see me hand in my notice - not the pay, not the admin nor the children.

On supporting the school - not wanting to reply to one post as lots have mentioned. I've been on PTA and do support them. Agree that it's not the final answer. In my time at the school I've seen the PTA go from funding nice to have stuff like outdoor learning spaces to now funding essentials that the budget can no longer cover - ew carpets, books etc. It is also getting harder and harder to raise money as parents feel the pinch.

However to avoid making my own practical thread more depressing - a practical question. Does the same sort of thing happen in secondaries? Do they also welcome book donations/volunteers etc?

I don't subscribe to the view that private is the best. I do think you need to target the best schools that you can, in London there are surplus places in primaries which will filter through to secondaries. Funding is based on headcount's so I think the most popular & successful schools will become even more desirable.

@Bluevelvetsofa yes absolutely we'll continue to support the school we're at and the secondary when we get there. We have savings for the kids which we always assumed would go towards uni/house in time. Now starting to adjust thinking that we may need those sooner/may need more to cover education before that

In the very short term, parents can do more "part time" home-schooling and try to make up for what they're missing at school, especially in terms of the basics such as literacy and numeracy but also in other subjects such as basic history/geography/science, a foreign language, etc. Plenty of free resources online such as BBC bytesize and loads and loads of Youtube videos. There are lots of study books you can buy to work through with your children, many of which are based on the "learning for fun" ethos. Yes, you may not be able to do much in school hours if you work, but there's always an hour or so in an evening or at the weekend to do some "fun learning".

Other than that, yes to helping fund raise for your school, but that's still longer term, it's not going to help things this month nor next.

And yes, ultimately, think of who you will vote for at the next GE, but realistically your child will have probably left the current school by the time a new Govt makes changes which take a while to filter through.

We are in London and eldest got his secondary place just a few weeks ago. Our top choice, a school we really like. Didn't even think to ask or check about vacancies and whether subjects were being taught by specialists.

Now slightly wondering if we should have gone for the more academic/selective school which would have been a possibility (the sort of school that parents tutor their kids to get into to avoid paying for an independent). We felt it wasn't right for him and that he would do well in the more balanced school with our support. Now I wonder if we were naive. Of course we can move him if things turn out badly, I guess I feel rattled personally as well as angered socially by how bad things are across the board.

@noproblemifnot

Does the same sort of thing happen in secondaries? Do they also welcome book donations/volunteers etc?

My son's secondary school had a very active "friends of" group which raised tens of thousands of pounds through direct charity "gift aid" donations from parents, various events throughout the year, running a shop in school selling second hand uniform, books, calculators, etc, running refreshments at parents evenings and open days, etc., So, yes, some schools are very active.

My old secondary school did none of that, and still don't according to a neighbour who sends her children there. I suppose it depends on the attitude of the head teacher and willingness of parents to get involved.

Listen to your child read.
Ask if the school w arts volunteers to hear children read. That frees up a TA to do other things.
Don't complain about stuff like lost jumpers. If I have to go and look for a jumper that means I can't go to the toilet before the staff meeting.
Pay for the school trip so we don't have to take £18 out of the class budget.
Just generally be supportive so we feel like the parents are on our side.

Most Academies are cash strapped too, they get the same funding as state maintained schools, but whereas state maintained schools pay externally for support in safeguarding, finance, hr etc academies usually have their own specialists in house.

Hope I am not this kind of parent but I do take this on board and will endeavour to never be that parent!

I have 3 DC - Y6 and Y3 in a wonderful primary school which we and they love

What is wonderful about the primary school?

I am worried about what awaits them in the years ahead as well as angry and depressed...
I realise that not voting Conservative in the next GE seems an obvious answer...
Should we be saving for tutors, looking at moving him to private in a few years?We have changes we could make to our lifestyle to make it affordable for him and maybe DC2 - then we pray that things are better for DC3?!

Have you factored in that a Labour government are likely to add VAT to private school fees? Or that more pupils will be priced out of the private sector into your dcs' schools?

Labour have also mooted 'clawing back' surplus funds from academy schools with big bank balances and 'redistributing' them. Is your Year 6 moving to an academy school with a big bank balance or a school likely to receive redistributed funds?

Starmer claims he can raise £1.7bn a year from private schools to fund a 'learning revolution' for state-educated ­children - focusing on disadvantaged children first - are your dc disadvantaged? Not to mention that £1.7bn is less than the extra funding recently pledged by the Conservatives;
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2022/nov/18/jeremy-hunt-announces-23bn-per-year-boost-for-state-schools

Write to your local authority (probably County Council) as that's responsible for educational delivery - ours is Tory-controlled, as well as your MP.