Parents councils?

[skewiff]

Do most schools have one of these?

What is their purpose, what sort of things do they deal with?

I am wondering whether to suggest setting one up in DS's school - to deal with things that parents would like to change in the school.

my daughter's school set up one last year. There are a few regular attendees but some only come when they have a complaint. Unfortunately, the mum who was elected Chair is not experienced at actually running a meeting, so there is a lot of repetition and talking over each other.

This could be a useful resource www.education.gov.uk/schools/leadership/governance/governingbodyprocedures/a0056978/setting-up-a-parent-council-a-resource-pack

We have found it useful getting the HT to explain why certain decisions have been taken - previously it was a bit "because I say so..."

Ours has three main functions:
fundraising (it organises Xmas Fair, school discos and other fundraisers, all profits going to provide equipment etc for the school)
communication: it has a website, which keeps parents up-to-date with goings-on, produces a termly newsletter, conducts parent survey each year and maintains FB page as well as holding regular meetings with the HT and staff reps.
enterprise: it tries to make links with local businesses where these could benefit the school, eg getting local builders to make playground improvements, seeking matched funding etc It also puts pressure on the local council to cough up for things that are of concern to parents eg repairs to fabric of the building, wireless internet access etc.
Be warned though, in most schools that I know of, the number of people who actively volunteer to take part is quite small, whether due to other commitments or to apathy, so those few end up having to do the bulk of the above, and it can be hard work.

We have a Parents Forum, which I think is the same sort of thing. Has been running for about a year.

It is entirely separate from the PTA, which deals with all the sorts of things that midnightexpress mentioned. The Parents Forum is specifically for parents to offer feedback about issues in school life and for the management team to consult parents about new initiatives/policy decisions.

For the first few meetings, it was a litany of complaints as everyone got their personal bugbears off their chests! But it has settled down into a pretty constructive forum. We have discussed issues such as homework policy, uniform issues, how we celebrate Christmas, how children are chosen (or not!) for sports teams and proposals for improving attendance (the only issue standing between the school and decent Ofsted grading!) The Head has used it to flag up new initiatives that are coming up and get parents' buy-in.

It has also been a useful way of getting some informed parents out into the playground. So when the classes were shuffled at the end of last year, the Head was able to explain her reasoning at the Parents Forum and those of us who were there were able to dispel some of the more ridiculous conspiracy theories that were floating around. We are also able to tip her off if playground gossip is raising some issues she needs to know about.

Tangible results have included a Parents' Maths Workshop, to help people understand how they teach maths these days. Also changes to the things we do at Christmas, to meet the desire of parents in KS2 for more of an "aaah" factor!

Attendance is not that high - probably 20 people max - but that does mean that it is possible to have a reasonable discussion, where everyone can have their say.