Links
Useful web links for parents
Do not delete cell
Do not delete cell

Information for Parents

There is a range of support and information available to parents through charities and organisations working with highly able pupils and their families. The parents’ sections at Potential plus and Excellence East are particularly useful.

• www.potentialplusuk.org
• www.excellenceeast.org.uk/

If you have questions or concerns relating to your child’s education, then do contact the school directly.

Concerns about School

Sometimes parents may feel unsure of whether a particular teacher or school is really providing the right challenges to move their child forward at a pace that they feel is appropriate. Where this is the case it often arises because the school is trying to meet the pupil's intellectual needs for a growth in understanding rather than merely an increase in knowledge. Sometimes it arises because a school is trying to support a pupil with PSHE needs as well as academic ones, encouraging the pupil to work in groups to develop communication skills, imagination and creativity.

Where parents are concerned about the provision for their children it is very important to communicate with the school so that any misunderstandings can be addressed and resolved. In communicating with the school the most effective approach is to:

• Contact the class teacher first to discuss your concerns and ask them to explain the current classroom approaches. It may be as a result of this discussion you agree with the teacher that a slightly different approach could be beneficial. It may be useful to take some informal notes and agree these with the teacher.
• It can sometimes be worth agreeing a review meeting later in the term at which progress with the new approach can be discussed.
• If the initial meeting with the class teacher does not resolve your concerns then the next step would be to contact the school's ‘gifted and talented’ coordinator or the headteacher. 
• Discussing the situation with the headteacher is important as the headteacher will have a strategic overview of matters relating to staff allocation and curriculum planning. It is important to bring to the meeting notes from discussions with the class teacher. At this stage it should become clear why the school is doing what it is doing and why it will continue to do so; or perhaps why a different course of action may be proposed.
• If subsequently there are still concerns, and a further meeting with the headteacher fails to resolve these, then a you may feel that it is appropriate to submit a formal complaint to the governing body. Procedures outlining how to do this are available at reception upon request in each school.

Useful Websites for Parents

• Useful Websites for Parents

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