School Handbook Changes To Help Parents

12th September 2012

A guide to help schools provide the information that parents want about their child's education has been published by Minister for Learning Alasdair Allan.

School handbooks are an important source of information for parents. New versions due out from schools later this year will provide more information about how the school is delivering Curriculum for Excellence for all its pupils, including:

The school approach to literacy, numeracy and health and wellbeing
What happens in S4 to S6, the senior phase of Curriculum for Excellence
What subjects are covered and when, including subject choices for exams
Opportunities at school to develop skills for life, future learning and work
How assessment and reporting is carried out at the school
The support provided for pupils, including additional support for learning
School ethos, performance and plans for improvement
Announcing the new guidance during a visit to Burgh Primary School, Musselburgh today Minister for Learning, Science and Scotland's Languages, Dr Alasdair Allan said:

"With Curriculum for Excellence embedding across the country, we carried out an extensive consultation with parents to make sure that the information the handbooks provide is relevant to their needs. We know that parental Involvement is a crucial factor in the successful implementation of Curriculum for Excellence and in raising attainment of children.

"Parents have told us that School Handbooks are a valued and trusted source of information for them on their local school. They want to be involved in supporting their child's learning and they want their schools to be the best they can be. We know that parents active involvement is a massive boost to a child's learning and development.

"I am pleased to announce the publication of guidance for local authorities on the new handbooks that will help schools prepare handbooks for publication in December this year."

Commenting on the development, Iain Ellis, Chair of the National Parent Forum Scotland (NPFS) said:"NPFS was pleased to support the consultation on the School Handbook. We helped to run events for parents around the country and get straight from parents what they wanted from their schools. I am delighted that the changes are now reflected in the legislation and the school handbooks will provide information that will help parents be more involved with their school and their child's learning."